|
Scripture~Leviticus 8.30-36 (ESV)
30Then Moses took some of the anointing oil and of the blood that was on the altar and sprinkled it on Aaron and his garments, and also on his sons and his sons' garments. So he consecrated Aaron and his garments, and his sons and his sons' garments with him.
31And Moses said to Aaron and his sons, "Boil the flesh at the entrance of the tent of meeting, and there eat it and the bread that is in the basket of ordination offerings, as I commanded, saying, 'Aaron and his sons shall eat it.' 32And what remains of the flesh and the bread you shall burn up with fire. 33And you shall not go outside the entrance of the tent of meeting for seven days, until the days of your ordination are completed, for it will take seven days to ordain you. 34As has been done today, the LORD has commanded to be done to make atonement for you. 35At the entrance of the tent of meeting you shall remain day and night for seven days, performing what the LORD has charged, so that you do not die, for so I have been commanded." 36And Aaron and his sons did all the things that the LORD commanded by Moses.
Comments
The ordination of the Hebrew priests would cover seven days: seven being the number of completion. The consecration, implied by anointing with oil and blood, of priests and garments, would be a rite of passage.
Those set aside to serve as priests were to transition from the profane, or common, sphere to the sacred, or holy, sphere. The liminal state, apparently, was a dangerous transition.
To return into the profane sphere before full consecration was to die, or possibly only risk death. Death would result, it seems, from contacting anything ritually unclean or, possibly, move back into the common sphere before readiness to do so would itself result in death.
This practice, as all the levitical code, has spiritual meaning for persons practicing spiritual Christianity. All aspects of the rites have correspondences with the inner realities of the contemplative life, the life of Pure Love Itself.
Indeed, there is a spiritual ordination, or consecration, for every person who chooses to follow Christ on the path of Pure Love. This is the person who chooses to be devoted to a life beyond the established churches and their rites, though she serves her Christ through her devotion to the churches and its rites. She finds Christ in, through, and beyond the churches.
|
|
We do not become spiritual Christians simply by association with the outer churches. We must enter the inner Church. This Holy Communion entails ongoing consecration, ordination of our every human faculty. We are christened, or Christ-ed, by the gracious energies of the Spirit of Love.
To move away from commitment to ongoing sanctification is a move from the sacred sphere~living life as Sacred Space and in daily awe of the Mystery of Life~, and entering the common sphere~, the mundane routine of even the religious persons who fail to live life in vibrant devotion to the holy Spirit and awareness of Sacred Reality.
The profane sphere is not profane for being wicked, as we think of such. The profane sphere is godless, in that persons live, while confessing religion and claiming a belief in God~though many only believe about, or their idea of, God~, as though God does not have right to absolute Ownership over life, and as though God is a convenient idea or distant reality who, or that, is not intimately deserving of the time and energy to enjoy in intimate Friendship. In this sense, our culture is profane; in this sense, many who profess to be Christians are religiously godless.
The sacred is not for us the sinless, as though a process of consecration entails moral perfection. However, we direct our whole heart in surrendered devotion to the Ground of Being, Who is Love. Thereby, spiritual fruit will emerge and mature, even if slowly, in us. This will manifest outwardly in a Christ-ed Life. Thereby, in Christ, and only in Christ, we become a Tree of Life, for we participate in that Tree of Life: Who He Is.
This is only possible for us Christians through the impartation of the energies of Grace: which the Holy Spirit applies as our Companion, our Paraclete, representing the Father and Son.
Thus, we pray for the completion of our consecration, through the Grace of Christ, and the consecration of the true Church, through the Holy Spirit, the Love of Christ and the Wisdom of the Father, to be truly holy. And, indeed, this holiness is true Beauty.
Suggested Reflection
How are you experiencing Christ in, through, and beyond the churches?
See next page for details on OneLife Ministries, Brian's book An Ache for Union, and material pertaining to sources used in the writing.
Feel free to submit a query. Thanks! Brian K. Wilcox
Continued... |
