2026/03/02

237. The Gospel of John and the Priesthood of the New Covenant: Towards Enlightenment III

In the dialogue between Jesus and the Samaritan woman in John 4 and the scenes that follow, Jesus demonstrates the distinction between the apostolic office and the priesthood of the New Covenant. Incidents, depicted in these scenes, were also a place of formation for the Apostles to understand their role. Jesus first chose twelve men, naming them apostles and drawing people's attention to them, so that the formation He imparted to them on earth might become the formation of all believers. The apostolic office, together with the gift of prophecy, which would be conferred upon all believers by the descended Holy Spirit (cf. Jn 16:13), forms the foundation for believers to work with the Holy Spirit. Paul, who called himself an apostle, must have been aware of these things. 

Moreover, at the Last Supper, during the institution of the Eucharist, Jesus conferred the priesthood of the New Covenant upon the Apostles by commanding them, "Do this in remembrance of me" (Lk 22:19). He then continued, "I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom, that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel" (22:29-30), entrusting them with kingly authority. 

This kingly authority is what the angel announced to Mary the mother of Jesus: "He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there will be no end" (Lk 1:32–33). The words "of his kingdom there will be no end" would make the priesthood of the New Covenant, conferred by Jesus upon the Apostles he chose, be perpetually inherited for all eternity. Just before Jesus ascended, the Apostles gathered and asked Him, "Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" (Acts 1:6). This was because Jesus' words concerning the kingship remained in their memory. Jesus answered them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has fixed by his own authority" (1:7). 

Thus, the priesthood of the New Covenant, through the kingly authority Jesus entrusted to the Apostles, continues to fulfil His command: "Do this in remembrance of me." Furthermore, His words, "you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom," established that the priesthood of the New Covenant serves, both now and forever, at the "table." Though Jesus offered Himself on the cross, He is born a Eucharist upon the table surrounded by the faithful. 

Before the descent of the Holy Spirit, at the suggestion of Apostle Peter, the disciples chose Matthias as the twelfth apostle (cf. Acts 1:23–25). This was to ensure the succession of the priesthood of the New Covenant and the kingly office, entrusted by Jesus, along with the apostolic office upon which these offices were to be established, and to prepare them for the gift of prophecy to be bestowed by the Holy Spirit. At this time, already some 120 people were united with the Apostles. These believers from before Pentecost welcomed the approximately three thousand people who joined after Pentecost as fellow believers (cf. 2:41). As it is written, "And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers" (2:42), the believers from before Pentecost exerted a centripetal force within the many new believers. 

However, as the number of disciples grew, the situation within the community changed. Complaints arose from the Greek-speaking Jews against the Hebrew-speaking Jews. Hearing the word "Greek," the Apostles intuitively understood that the time Jesus had spoken of when ascending to heaven – "It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has fixed by his own authority" – was just now. That was because the Holy Spirit reminded them that it had been precisely when some Greeks, coming up to Jerusalem, had asked to see Jesus that He, realising it had been the time of heading towards His passion, had spoken, "The hour has come for the Son of man to be glorified" (Jn 12:23). At this time too, the number of people following Jesus was increasing, becoming a crowd.

 In this situation, the Twelve summoned the whole company of disciples together and said, "It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. Therefore, brethren, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this duty. But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word" (Acts 6:2-4). 

Jesus had trained the twelve, called "Apostles," for the coming of the Holy Spirit. An "apostle" signified a believer whose humanity had been reconstituted upon the foundation of the "apostolic office" and the "prophetic office." Now that the Holy Spirit had descended, it was time for all believers to become apostles. The twelve Apostles, thanks to the Holy Spirit, understood that they themselves were such apostles, having been entrusted by Jesus with both kingly authority and the priesthood of the New Covenant. They realised they must become those who teach and administer the priesthood of the New Covenant, bestowed upon them by Jesus along with kingly authority, and work to establish it as an eternally sustainable ministry. They realised they must stand as today's "bishops." Their declaration to devote themselves to prayer and the ministry of the word became a momentous decision, one that certainly reaches us believers today. 

Maria K.M.