THEOSISCyrill of Alexandria
Palladium. What are your thoughts on this? Cyril. Indeed, on the eighth day, the Lord's glory revealed itself, and the Son was made known, shining with the divine glory of God and the Father. This is what God referred to, speaking to the most sacred Moses: ‘I am living,’ says the Lord, ‘Truly the whole earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord’ (Num. 14:21). He sanctifies us, presenting Himself as if in the form of a calf, hardening our hearts, liberating us from sin, forgiving our transgressions, and purifying us from the impurities of condemnation. Similarly, He offered Himself like a ram, bringing forth a pleasing aroma, also being the sacrifice of our salvation, redeeming us with His own blood.
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He became like fine flour, anointed with oil, embodying the joy of a holy life, manifesting Himself to us before God the Father. Palladius. I grasp your meaning. Cyril. I also believe that this offering for Aaron and the people signifies beautifully the consecration of the saints to God. When Immanuel, through whom we are called to holiness, has been revealed, we are finally made pleasant and set apart, fragrant to the Father. Although the consecration of the priests, as previously noted, adhered to the law, they were sanctified anew through Him (Immanuel) multiple times: For He was offered as a bullock outside the camp for sin; He was burned like a ram, honored in the proper way, representing each individual and all of us; He consecrated them, anointing them with His blood, as the ram of salvation. When the eighth day arrived, which marked the day when the glory of Christ was most fully revealed, alongside the defeat of death and decay, the priests and the people made offerings to God, not with gifts merely pleasing to the senses as Israel did in the flesh, but by presenting themselves as a fragrant sacrifice: In these offerings, we symbolically surrender our very souls to God, departing from worldly desires and the wisdom of the flesh, enduring the mortification of our passions, and partaking in Christ, so that we might transition to a holy and blameless existence, living according to His purpose. The Apostle Paul writes: ‘We always bear in the body the deadness of the Lord Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body’ (2 Corinthians 4:10). And again, ‘if we endure, we shall also reign with Him’ (2 Tim. 2:12); ‘if we are united to His death and His sufferings, we shall also be joint-heirs of the resurrection and of His glory’ (Rom. 6:5; cf. Phil. 3:10:21). ‘Jesus, therefore, that he might sanctify men by his blood, suffered outside the gate,’ according to the words of blessed Paul (Heb. 13:12). “Let us therefore go out to Him beyond the camp, bearing His reproach,” outside the gate (Heb. 13:13); like the bullock quenched, and like the ram consumed, we are pleasing to God through our lives in Christ. These sacrifices are for Aaron and his descendants, but the offering for the people is a goat sacrificed for sin. Why is this so when a bullock was given for the purification of the priests? The matters concerning the priests take precedence: both the offerings and those related to sanctification. For example, the bullock is larger than the goat, symbolizing the spiritual superiority of these elements. The calf and the lamb for burnt offerings mystically represent the infancy in Christ of those sanctified by faith. The ox and the ram distinctly symbolize patience and bravery, as well as fruitfulness in humility: the ox depicts patience, and the ram represents courage. The wheat flour moistened with oil clearly signifies the bright hope of life in Christ: for it is not to those who are sorrowful and mourning, but to those who rejoice and find pleasure that we must cling to the presence of Christ (Ps. 94:1). Just as the glory of Christ will shine brightest in receiving the fruits of the saints' offerings, so God once descended in the form of fire and consumed the sacrifices. It is as if He perceives the glorification of the faithful through belief as nourishment and joy for Himself. Yet, this also points to a deeper mystery: God sent down the fire upon the pieces that were presented, touching what lay before Him, since the divine presence is often depicted as fiery; now, however, when the spiritual sacrifice is offered, He, no longer as fire, but through the Holy Spirit, energizes what is presented, making it life-giving for those who wish to partake of it. We embrace this truth by faith. Palladius. You have articulated this well. Cyril. Raising his hands, Aaron blessed the people. Notice this initial imposition of Aaron's hands upon the people: the true Aaron blesses all, the priests and the people, ‘the little ones with the great,’ as stated in Scripture (Psalms 113:21), scarcely laying his hands; and this laying on of hands symbolizes the descent of the Holy Spirit upon us. Before Aaron’s priesthood, there was no imposition of hands; ‘the Holy Spirit was not yet upon them,’ as John states, ‘because Jesus was not yet glorified’ (John 7:39).