October 20, 2010 – Exodus 29

When it first talked about the young bull and two lambs I immediately thought about Christ and the 2 thieves.  Since we just talked about the transfiguration you could also think about Jesus and Moses and Elijah, or Peter, James and John.  The number three is an important one, but the way this was divided as 1 of one thing and two of something else to make three is what really made me think of those three sets of three.  The bull is used as the sin offering.  This would also point to Christ in the other sets of 3.  One of the rams is considered an ordination ram, which could point to Moses and the law in the set at the Transfiguration.  I can’t see where it describes what the third ram’s particular holocaust was, so I am not sure how that fits in. 

I think it is important to see how there are certain men set aside as priest with particular purposes.  We are all called to a priestly vocation.  We are called to share in Christ ultimate sacrifice by offering our own daily struggles in life as sacrifice to God.  In so doing, we are being “priest” in offering sacrifice to God.  But God sets aside special individuals to become Priest in a different way, to offer the Sacrifice of the Mass, which at its heart is a ceremony of sacrifice.  Only those ordained as priest are allowed to engage in this type of special sacrifice.  We see that tradition of picking out certain people for a particular priestly role of offering special sacrifices to God starting here with the choosing of Aaron and his sons. 

Why the laying on of hands of the animals before the sacrifice.  It is my understanding that with the laying on of hands, there was a transfer of something to the animal.  In the case of a sin offering, the sins of either an individual or the Israelite nation was transferred on to the animal and then sacrificed.  This was to get rid of their sins.  It was an imperfect sacrifice perfected in Christ who took on our sins and then offered Himself as Sacrifice to give us the opportunity to repent of our sins.  It is in studying these Old Testament traditions and beliefs that Christ sacrifice really comes into a fuller light.