DA7 58: JAN 29

LV 10-11

Nadab and Abihu

10 Now Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu, each took his censer, put fire in it, and laid incense on it; and they offered unholy fire before the Lord, such as he had not commanded them. ² And fire came out from the presence of the Lordand consumed them, and they died before the Lord. ³ Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord meant when he said,

‘Through those who are near me
    I will show myself holy,
and before all the people
    I will be glorified.’”

And Aaron was silent.

⁴ Moses summoned Mishael and Elzaphan, sons of Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said to them, “Come forward, and carry your kinsmen away from the front of the sanctuary to a place outside the camp.” ⁵ They came forward and carried them by their tunics out of the camp, as Moses had ordered. ⁶ And Moses said to Aaron and to his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, “Do not dishevel your hair, and do not tear your vestments, or you will die and wrath will strike all the congregation; but your kindred, the whole house of Israel, may mourn the burning that the Lord has sent. ⁷ You shall not go outside the entrance of the tent of meeting, or you will die; for the anointing oil of the Lord is on you.” And they did as Moses had ordered.

⁸ And the Lord spoke to Aaron: ⁹ Drink no wine or strong drink, neither you nor your sons, when you enter the tent of meeting, that you may not die; it is a statute forever throughout your generations. ¹⁰ You are to distinguish between the holy and the common, and between the unclean and the clean; ¹¹ and you are to teach the people of Israel all the statutes that the Lord has spoken to them through Moses.

¹² Moses spoke to Aaron and to his remaining sons, Eleazar and Ithamar: Take the grain offering that is left from theLord’s offerings by fire, and eat it unleavened beside the altar, for it is most holy; ¹³ you shall eat it in a holy place, because it is your due and your sons’ due, from the offerings by fire to the Lord; for so I am commanded. ¹⁴ But the breast that is elevated and the thigh that is raised, you and your sons and daughters as well may eat in any clean place; for they have been assigned to you and your children from the sacrifices of the offerings of well-being of the people of Israel. ¹⁵ The thigh that is raised and the breast that is elevated they shall bring, together with the offerings by fire of the fat, to raise for an elevation offering before the Lord; they are to be your due and that of your children forever, as the Lord has commanded.

¹⁶ Then Moses made inquiry about the goat of the sin offering, and—it had already been burned! He was angry with Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron’s remaining sons, and said, ¹⁷ “Why did you not eat the sin offering in the sacred area? For it is most holy, and God^[a] has given it to you that you may remove the guilt of the congregation, to make atonement on their behalf before the Lord. ¹⁸ Its blood was not brought into the inner part of the sanctuary. You should certainly have eaten it in the sanctuary, as I commanded.” ¹⁹ And Aaron spoke to Moses, “See, today they offered their sin offering and their burnt offering before the Lord; and yet such things as these have befallen me! If I had eaten the sin offering today, would it have been agreeable to the Lord?” ²⁰ And when Moses heard that, he agreed.

Clean and Unclean Foods

11 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them: ² Speak to the people of Israel, saying:

From among all the land animals, these are the creatures that you may eat. ³ Any animal that has divided hoofs and is cleft-footed and chews the cud—such you may eat. ⁴ But among those that chew the cud or have divided hoofs, you shall not eat the following: the camel, for even though it chews the cud, it does not have divided hoofs; it is unclean for you. ⁵ The rock badger, for even though it chews the cud, it does not have divided hoofs; it is unclean for you. ⁶ The hare, for even though it chews the cud, it does not have divided hoofs; it is unclean for you. ⁷ The pig, for even though it has divided hoofs and is cleft-footed, it does not chew the cud; it is unclean for you. ⁸ Of their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall not touch; they are unclean for you.

⁹ These you may eat, of all that are in the waters. Everything in the waters that has fins and scales, whether in the seas or in the streams—such you may eat. ¹⁰ But anything in the seas or the streams that does not have fins and scales, of the swarming creatures in the waters and among all the other living creatures that are in the waters—they are detestable to you ¹¹ and detestable they shall remain. Of their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall regard as detestable. ¹² Everything in the waters that does not have fins and scales is detestable to you.

¹³ These you shall regard as detestable among the birds. They shall not be eaten; they are an abomination: the eagle, the vulture, the osprey, ¹⁴ the buzzard, the kite of any kind; ¹⁵ every raven of any kind; ¹⁶ the ostrich, the nighthawk, the sea gull, the hawk of any kind; ¹⁷ the little owl, the cormorant, the great owl, ¹⁸ the water hen, the desert owl,^[b]the carrion vulture, ¹⁹ the stork, the heron of any kind, the hoopoe, and the bat.^[c]

²⁰ All winged insects that walk upon all fours are detestable to you. ²¹ But among the winged insects that walk on all fours you may eat those that have jointed legs above their feet, with which to leap on the ground. ²² Of them you may eat: the locust according to its kind, the bald locust according to its kind, the cricket according to its kind, and the grasshopper according to its kind. ²³ But all other winged insects that have four feet are detestable to you.

Unclean Animals

²⁴ By these you shall become unclean; whoever touches the carcass of any of them shall be unclean until the evening,²⁵ and whoever carries any part of the carcass of any of them shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening.²⁶ Every animal that has divided hoofs but is not cleft-footed or does not chew the cud is unclean for you; everyone who touches one of them shall be unclean. ²⁷ All that walk on their paws, among the animals that walk on all fours, are unclean for you; whoever touches the carcass of any of them shall be unclean until the evening, ²⁸ and the one who carries the carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening; they are unclean for you.

²⁹ These are unclean for you among the creatures that swarm upon the earth: the weasel, the mouse, the great lizard according to its kind, ³⁰ the gecko, the land crocodile, the lizard, the sand lizard, and the chameleon. ³¹ These are unclean for you among all that swarm; whoever touches one of them when they are dead shall be unclean until the evening. ³² And anything upon which any of them falls when they are dead shall be unclean, whether an article of wood or cloth or skin or sacking, any article that is used for any purpose; it shall be dipped into water, and it shall be unclean until the evening, and then it shall be clean. ³³ And if any of them falls into any earthen vessel, all that is in it shall be unclean, and you shall break the vessel. ³⁴ Any food that could be eaten shall be unclean if water from any such vessel comes upon it; and any liquid that could be drunk shall be unclean if it was in any such vessel.³⁵ Everything on which any part of the carcass falls shall be unclean; whether an oven or stove, it shall be broken in pieces; they are unclean, and shall remain unclean for you. ³⁶ But a spring or a cistern holding water shall be clean, while whatever touches the carcass in it shall be unclean. ³⁷ If any part of their carcass falls upon any seed set aside for sowing, it is clean; ³⁸ but if water is put on the seed and any part of their carcass falls on it, it is unclean for you.

³⁹ If an animal of which you may eat dies, anyone who touches its carcass shall be unclean until the evening. ⁴⁰ Those who eat of its carcass shall wash their clothes and be unclean until the evening; and those who carry the carcass shall wash their clothes and be unclean until the evening.

⁴¹ All creatures that swarm upon the earth are detestable; they shall not be eaten. ⁴² Whatever moves on its belly, and whatever moves on all fours, or whatever has many feet, all the creatures that swarm upon the earth, you shall not eat; for they are detestable. ⁴³ You shall not make yourselves detestable with any creature that swarms; you shall not defile yourselves with them, and so become unclean. ⁴⁴ For I am the Lord your God; sanctify yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. You shall not defile yourselves with any swarming creature that moves on the earth. ⁴⁵ For I am the Lord who brought you up from the land of Egypt, to be your God; you shall be holy, for I am holy.

⁴⁶ This is the law pertaining to land animal and bird and every living creature that moves through the waters and every creature that swarms upon the earth, ⁴⁷ to make a distinction between the unclean and the clean, and between the living creature that may be eaten and the living creature that may not be eaten.

PS 60

Prayer for National Victory after Defeat

To the leader: according to the Lily of the Covenant. A Miktam of David; for instruction; when he struggled with Aram-naharaim and with Aram-zobah, and when Joab on his return killed twelve thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt.

¹ O God, you have rejected us, broken our defenses;
    you have been angry; now restore us!
² You have caused the land to quake; you have torn it open;
    repair the cracks in it, for it is tottering.
³ You have made your people suffer hard things;
    you have given us wine to drink that made us reel.

⁴ You have set up a banner for those who fear you,
    to rally to it out of bowshot.^[a]Selah
⁵ Give victory with your right hand, and answer us,^[b]
    so that those whom you love may be rescued.

⁶ God has promised in his sanctuary:^[c]
    “With exultation I will divide up Shechem,
    and portion out the Vale of Succoth.
⁷ Gilead is mine, and Manasseh is mine;
    Ephraim is my helmet;
    Judah is my scepter.
⁸ Moab is my washbasin;
    on Edom I hurl my shoe;
    over Philistia I shout in triumph.”

⁹ Who will bring me to the fortified city?
    Who will lead me to Edom?
¹⁰ Have you not rejected us, O God?
    You do not go out, O God, with our armies.
¹¹ O grant us help against the foe,
    for human help is worthless.
¹² With God we shall do valiantly;
    it is he who will tread down our foes.

ACTS 2.22-47

²² “You that are Israelites,^[a] listen to what I have to say: Jesus of Nazareth,^[b] a man attested to you by God with deeds of power, wonders, and signs that God did through him among you, as you yourselves know— ²³ this man, handed over to you according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of those outside the law. ²⁴ But God raised him up, having freed him from death,^[c] because it was impossible for him to be held in its power. ²⁵ For David says concerning him,

‘I saw the Lord always before me,
    for he is at my right hand so that I will not be shaken;
²⁶ therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced;
    moreover my flesh will live in hope.
²⁷ For you will not abandon my soul to Hades,
    or let your Holy One experience corruption.
²⁸ You have made known to me the ways of life;
    you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’

²⁹ “Fellow Israelites,^[d] I may say to you confidently of our ancestor David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. ³⁰ Since he was a prophet, he knew that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would put one of his descendants on his throne. ³¹ Foreseeing this, David^[e] spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah,^[f]saying,

‘He was not abandoned to Hades,
    nor did his flesh experience corruption.’

³² This Jesus God raised up, and of that all of us are witnesses. ³³ Being therefore exalted at^[g] the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you both see and hear.³⁴ For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says,

‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at my right hand,
³⁵     until I make your enemies your footstool.”’

³⁶ Therefore let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah,^[h] this Jesus whom you crucified.”

The First Converts

³⁷ Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, “Brothers,^[i] what should we do?” ³⁸ Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³⁹ For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him.” ⁴⁰ And he testified with many other arguments and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” ⁴¹ So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added. ⁴² They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

Life among the Believers

⁴³ Awe came upon everyone, because many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles. ⁴⁴ All who believed were together and had all things in common; ⁴⁵ they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds^[j] to all, as any had need. ⁴⁶ Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home^[k] and ate their food with glad and generous^[l] hearts, ⁴⁷ praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.

CAT 456-463

Article 3

"HE WAS CONCEIVED BY THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, AND WAS BORN OF THE VIRGIN MARY"

Paragraph 1. THE SON OF GOD BECAME MAN

I. WHY DID THE WORD BECOME FLESH?

456 With the Nicene Creed, we answer by confessing: "For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven; by the power of the Holy Spirit, he became incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and was made man."

457 The Word became flesh for us in order to save us by reconciling us with God, who "loved us and sent his Son to be the expiation for our sins": "the Father has sent his Son as the Saviour of the world", and "he was revealed to take away sins":⁷⁰

Sick, our nature demanded to be healed; fallen, to be raised up; dead, to rise again. We had lost the possession of the good; it was necessary for it to be given back to us. Closed in the darkness, it was necessary to bring us the light; captives, we awaited a Saviour; prisoners, help; slaves, a liberator. Are these things minor or insignificant? Did they not move God to descend to human nature and visit it, since humanity was in so miserable and unhappy a state?⁷¹

458 The Word became flesh so that thus we might know God's love: "In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him."⁷² "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."⁷³

459 The Word became flesh to be our model of holiness: "Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me." "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me."⁷⁴ On the mountain of the Transfiguration, the Father commands: "Listen to him!"⁷⁵Jesus is the model for the Beatitudes and the norm of the new law: "Love one another as I have loved you."⁷⁶ This love implies an effective offering of oneself, after his example.⁷⁷

460 The Word became flesh to make us "partakers of the divine nature":⁷⁸ "For this is why the Word became man, and the Son of God became the Son of man: so that man, by entering into communion with the Word and thus receiving divine sonship, might become a son of God."⁷⁹ "For the Son of God became man so that we might become God."⁸⁰ "The only-begotten Son of God, wanting to make us sharers in his divinity, assumed our nature, so that he, made man, might make men gods."⁸¹

II. THE INCARNATION

461 Taking up St. John's expression, "The Word became flesh",⁸² The Church calls "Incarnation" the fact that the Son of God assumed a human nature in order to accomplish our salvation in it. In a hymn cited by St. Paul, the Church sings the mystery of the Incarnation:

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. and being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross.⁸³

462 The Letter to the Hebrews refers to the same mystery:

Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said, "Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body have you prepared for me; in burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure. Then I said, Lo, I have come to do your will, O God."⁸⁴

463 Belief in the true Incarnation of the Son of God is the distinctive sign of Christian faith: "By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit which confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God."⁸⁵ Such is the joyous conviction of the Church from her beginning whenever she sings "the mystery of our religion": "He was manifested in the flesh."⁸⁶