Word of the day

A reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Hebrews
Heb 8:6-13

Brothers and sisters:
Now our high priest has obtained so much more excellent a ministry
as he is mediator of a better covenant,
enacted on better promises.

For if that first covenant had been faultless,
no place would have been sought for a second one.
But he finds fault with them and says:
Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord,
when I will conclude a new covenant with the house of
Israel and the house of Judah.
It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers
the day I took them by the hand to lead
them forth from the land of Egypt;
for they did not stand by my covenant
and I ignored them, says the Lord.
But this is the covenant I will establish with the house of Israel
after those days, says the Lord:
I will put my laws in their minds
and I will write them upon their hearts.
I will be their God,
and they shall be my people.
And they shall not teach, each one his fellow citizen and kin, saying,
“Know the Lord,”
for all shall know me, from least to greatest.
For I will forgive their evildoing
and remember their sins no more.

When he speaks of a “new” covenant,
he declares the first one obsolete.
And what has become obsolete
and has grown old is close to disappearing.

From the Gospel according to Mark
Mk 3:13-19

Jesus went up the mountain and summoned those whom he wanted
and they came to him.
He appointed Twelve, whom he also named Apostles,
that they might be with him
and he might send them forth to preach
and to have authority to drive out demons:
He appointed the Twelve:
Simon, whom he named Peter;
James, son of Zebedee,
and John the brother of James, whom he named Boanerges,
that is, sons of thunder;
Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew,
Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus;
Thaddeus, Simon the Cananean,
and Judas Iscariot who betrayed him.

That first community was formed of 120 brothers and sisters, more or less: a number that contains within it the number 12, emblematic of Israel — because it represents the 12 tribes — and emblematic of the Church, with reference to the 12 Apostles chosen by Jesus. (…) They are accredited witnesses to Christ’s work of salvation and do not show the world their presumed perfection but rather, through the grace of unity, enable the emergence of an Other who now lives in a new manner in the midst of his people. And who is this? It is the Lord Jesus. The Apostles choose to live under the lordship of the Risen One in unity among the brethren, which becomes the only possible context of authentic self-giving. We too need to rediscover the beauty of witnessing to the Risen One, by leaving behind self-referential attitudes, by ceasing to hold back the gifts of God and by not giving in to mediocrity. (General audience, 12 June 2019)