(Please read this Scripture passage first, before the homily.)
The Ark of the Covenant symbolized God’s presence to the people. Moses had fashioned it in the wilderness. It contained the tablets of the Law, the staff of Aaron and a sample of the manna. It seems to have disappeared before the exile because no mention is made of it at the time of the exile. Stories circulated that the prophet Jeremiah or King Josiah had hid it before the exile
The prophet Jeremiah, in today’s reading, calls the people to repentance. If the people heed this call, then Jeremiah announces a return from exile. In this return, the people will no longer miss the Ark of the Covenant or even think about it. This may sound strange that they should not miss such an important part of their history. There is, however, an explanation. In this return from exile and in the repopulating of the great city Jerusalem, the people will experience in a more awesome way the presence of God in their midst.
If you had thought that the Ark of the Covenant was such a great symbol, the sign of the return and the rebuilding would be a much greater sign of this presence of God.
Our rebellion from God causes us to go into exile, voluntarily, from God. Our repentance and our refusal to walk any longer in our hardhearted wickedness by God’s mercy, brings us back from exile. In this, we experience the saving power of God and know God’s presence in our lives.
We do not have the Ark of the Covenant any more, but we do have the Church, which is the living presence of God, through Christ, in the world. In fact, we are that Church, that presence of God in the world through our baptism and faith in God.
The prophet Jeremiah addresses us. He calls us to repentance, he calls us to be the presence of God in the world that God has called us to be. If the Ark of the Covenant conveyed the presence of God to the people, how much more should our presence in the world manifest the presence of God in our world.