MARY PART 2: THE ARK OF THE COVENANT

Mary as the New Ark of the Covenant:

Thank you for your compliment, I do not know how well written it is, but I do try to make it as clear as possible. I do anticipate objections and that is fine. We can discuss them as they come.

Starting off with a quote from the great St. Athanasius of Alexandria, defender of the Holy Trinity  (296-373)  “O noble Virgin, truly you are greater than any other greatness. For who is your equal in greatness, O dwelling place of God the Word? To whom among all creatures shall I compare you, O Virgin? You are greater than them all O Ark of the Covenant, clothed with purity instead of gold! You are the Ark in which is found the golden vessel containing the true manna, that is, the flesh in which Divinity resides.” Homily of the Papyrus of Turin.

The Ark of the Covenant which was the dwelling place for God among his people (Exodus 25:8). That which was so holy that once placed into the inner sanctuary of the Temple it would be filled with the Holy Spirit  henceforth being known as the Holy of Holies where no one could enter except for the high priest once a year or they would die.  (1 Kings 8:6)

The glory of the Lord “overshadowed” the ark and filled the tabernacle.
(Exodus 40:33-35) "Moses could not enter the Tent of Meeting because the cloud had settled upon it (the Art), and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle."

The Spirit comes upon the Virgin Mary and “overshadows” her, so that she might conceive and give birth to Jesus. (Luke 1:35)
"The angel answered, 'The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.'"



The Ark had within it (according to Hebs 9:4)  a golden jar holding the manna, Aaron’s rod that  had budded (symbol of his priesthood), and the stone tablets of the covenant  (God's word written on stone).

Mary had within her the true bread which comes down from heaven (John 6:48-50), the ultimate High Priest (Heb 8:1) and God's word made flesh. (John 1:1)



Parallels between Mary and the Ark:

"The ark of the LORD remained in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite for three months, and the LORD blessed him and his entire household." (2 Sam 6:11) David, wearing a linen ephod, danced before the LORD with all his might, while he and all Israel were bringing up the ark of the LORD with shouts and the sound of trumpets. As the ark of the LORD was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD, she despised him in her heart. (2 Sam 6:14-16)

In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.” (Lk 1:39-45) And Mary remained with her about three months and then returned to her home. (Luk 1:56)


Lining up the parallels we see.

The Ark is in the hill country - He left the ark in the hill country
The New Ark is in the hill country - Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country

The Ark stayed in the hill country for three months - He left the ark in the hill country of Judea for three months
The New Ark stayed in the hill country for three months - And Mary remained with her about three months and then returned to her home.

David proclaims about the Ark - "How can the ark of the Lord come to me?"
Elizabeth proclaims about the New Ark - And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?

David danced and leapts before the Ark - As the ark of the LORD was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD, she despised him in her heart.
John the Baptist  leaps for Joy before the New Ark - For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leaped for joy.



The Ark in Revelation:

In the book of Revelation John reaccounts seeing the Art of the Covenant after it had been missing for hundreds of years.

Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a severe hailstorm.  (Rev 11:19)

At this high point of revealing the missing Ark John goes on to describe the image of the Woman. "A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head." (Rev 12:1)



Lets end this part with a quote from St. Ambrose (c. 339-397)

“The prophet David danced before the Ark.  Now what else should we say the Ark was but holy Mary?  The Ark bore within it the tables of the Testament, but Mary bore the Heir of the same Testament itself.  The former contained in it the Law, the latter the Gospel.  The one had the voice of God, the other His Word.  The Ark, indeed, was radiant within and without with the glitter of gold, but holy Mary shone within and without with the splendor of virginity.  The one was adorned with earthly gold, the other with heavenly” (Serm. xlii. 6, Int. Opp., S. Ambrosii) (Blessed Virgin, p. 77).