22 January 2021

This is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel
after those days, says the Lord:
I will put my laws in their minds,
and write them on their hearts,
and I will be their God,
and they shall be my people.
Hebrews 8: 6-13, NRSV.

The concept of Covenant would have been very familiar to the new Christians of this community of the Hebrews. Their Jewish ancestors would have told them of the covenants that shaped their history, and especially of the covenant made between God and Moses. In this covenant, the people of Israel were promised that they would be God’s Chosen People in return for their obedience to God’s law. This Covenant was seen as a sacred agreement and today our Christian faith still teaches that the Jews are ” a people most dear to God.” (Lumen Gentium). As we know, the Chosen People did not altogether fulfil their part of the covenant and often went their own way. God promised a new covenant, and here we are told what it will be like. The people will no longer just obey an external code but will have God’s laws written on their inmost beings. Knowledge of God will not be confined to a chosen few but everyone will have first hand knowledge of their God. For Christians, this new Covenant is made possible through Jesus Christ whose life, death and resurrection made God’s love real and tangible.

• • Why did the Hebrews need to be reminded of this New Covenant ? 
  • Why are God’s laws to be placed in both hearts and minds?

Reflect on the laws that God has placed in your mind and written on your heart.