“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell in unity, like the precious oil that was poured on Aaron’s head, running down onto his beard and onto the collar of his garments!” It will be like the dew of Hermon on Mount Zion, for there the Lord has commanded the blessing of eternal life (Psalm 133:1-3).
These verses of the psalm make up the entirety of Psalm 133, and its message of unity and hope is especially important in today’s challenging times, a Catholic priest told Fox News Digital this week.
“Every weekend, in different houses of worship across the United States, Jewish and Christian communities of many traditions turn to the Psalms as a source of prayer,” said the Rev. Jeffrey Kirby.
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Kirby is pastor at Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church in Indian Land, S.C. He hosts a morning service called “Morning Offering with Father Kirby.”
The psalms, sometimes sung by choirs or choral groups, “reveal the inner workings of the human heart as it seeks to meet God,” he said, and are “a truly rare snapshot of the human spirit and its desire to see and understand God.”
South Carolina pastor Jeffrey Kirby spoke of Psalm 133 in response to the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania last week. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images, Jeffrey Kirby)
“The 150 psalms are filled with cries of lament and songs of praise — they express every emotion of the human soul,” Kirby said.
“They are natural and fluid, and deeply express the beauty and chaos of the human mind,” he said.
Psalm 133 is especially poignant in light of recent events.
“In a time of marked polarization and division, exacerbated recently by the shocking assassination attempt on a former president and leading political candidate, we can follow the example of countless generations and turn to the psalms,” Kirby said.
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Psalm 133 “inspires our hearts and gives us guidance and encouragement,” he said.
“This psalm is one of the ascension psalms because it was sung by a people approaching Jerusalem for one of the great festivals. But its powerful call for unity and assurance of hope for peace among peoples shocks and shakes believers of every generation,” Kirby said.
“In our modern times of polarization and division, exacerbated most recently by the shocking assassination attempt on a former president and leading political candidate, we can follow the example of countless generations and turn to the Psalms,” the South Carolina bishop said. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
“The psalms are classic examples of reading the human heart and putting it into words, and Psalm 133 expresses the deepest feelings of many Americans today,” Kirby said.
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By way of background, Kirby said, “In ancient Israel, the use of oil was a sign of grace and blessing. It was used to demonstrate God’s presence and purpose.”
He said it was “biblically interesting” that the concept of unity is likened to this type of oil that was anointed on the garments of Aaron, “the spiritual father of the Old Testament temple priests.”
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“The psalmist tells us that unity is a gift from God, linked to the worship of God and the prayer of humanity.”
“When we pray this psalm, we feel it resonate in our own souls and in the soul of our nation.”
Additionally, Mount Hermon had special significance in Biblical times that may not be known to modern readers, Kirby said.
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Mount Hermon is “the largest and most prominent mountain range in the Holy Land,” he said.
A Catholic priest in South Carolina said Psalm 133 conveys a message of unity. (iStock)
“From the height of Mount Hermon, the dew was thought to symbolically fall over the entire earth. Mount Hermon was a sign of God’s blessing and guarantee of the gift of life.”
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Kirby noted that the psalmist likens unity to “the dew of Hermon.”
“Unity is also a glorious manifestation of God’s blessing upon us.”
“Just as mountains provided defense, security and pure springs to God’s people, so unity provides protection, stability and vitality to society,” he said.
Just as Mount Hermon was a sign of God’s blessing, “unity is also a glorious manifestation of God’s blessing upon us,” he said.
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“When we pray this psalm, we feel it speak to our own soul and the soul of our nation,” Kirby said.
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“As Americans, we ask God today, yearning and longing in our hearts for the precious peace that can come from the ‘precious oil’ of unity and the ‘dew of Hermon.'”
