“Jonah had received God’s saving mercy just days before, but rather than rejoice in the Ninevites’ salvation, he was angry. He admitted he fled to Tarshish because he knew God would be merciful: “I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster” (4:2)”.

Joanna Kimbrel

 

Christ on Every Page: How the Book of Jonah Points to Jesus

August 25, 2025  |  Joanna Kimbrel

  

All of Scripture points to Jesus. Whether a passage predicts Christ, prepares God’s people for Christ, reflects Christ, or shows the results of Christ’s work, we can find him on every page. It’s easy to see Jesus in the Gospel accounts or the New Testament epistles, but what about the books of the law or Old Testament historical narratives? Understanding or teaching passages from these books in a Christ-centered way isn’t always straightforward.

 

Let’s examine the book of Jonah—a minor prophet written as historical narrative—to see how this familiar story points us to Jesus.

 

Obedience to the Call

 

The book opens with God’s call to Jonah to go and warn the people of Nineveh of God’s judgment because it was a wicked city known for its violence and idolatry. Instead of obeying, Jonah fled in the opposite direction, boarding a ship to Tarshish to escape God’s presence—and his will. It’s here we see the first way that Jesus is the better Jonah.

 

Damien Mackey’s comment: On the location of Tarshish, see my article:

 

Flavius Josephus was right to identify “Tarshish” as Tarsus

 

(6) Flavius Josephus was right to identify “Tarshish” as Tarsus

 

Joanna Kimbrel continues:

 

Like Jonah, Jesus received a mission from God to leave his home and deliver God’s Word to sinful people. Unlike Jonah, whose heart was bent on disobeying God’s command, Jesus willingly obeyed God’s call to leave his heavenly home to come to us. Even though his mission would cost him his life, he “humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Phil. 2:8). In Gethsemane, Jesus prayed through tears and bloody sweat, “Not my will, but yours, be done” (Luke 22:42), submitting to the Father even in the face of unimaginable suffering. Jonah disobeyed; Jesus obeyed.

 

Cast Down to Death

 

But God pursued Jonah. The Lord hurled on the sea a storm so intense that the boat was on the brink of breaking into pieces. While the terrified sailors cried out to their gods, Jonah slept inside the ship. The captain woke him, saying, “What do you mean, you sleeper? Arise, call out to your god!” (Jonah 1:6). Jonah knew the storm was for him, so he told the sailors the only way they could live was if he died. They reluctantly obeyed, and as Jonah sank beneath the waves, God calmed the storm.

 

Unlike Jonah, whose heart was bent on disobeying God’s command, Jesus willingly obeyed God’s call to leave his heavenly home to come to us.

 

 Mark 4:35–41 tells a parallel story. Jesus, too, was asleep during a violent storm as his disciples panicked. They woke him, crying, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” (v. 38). But unlike Jonah, Jesus himself spoke to the storm and stilled it with a word. The sea obeyed him immediately. The disciples marveled at Jesus, understanding that only God can command creation. They wondered aloud, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” (v. 41). The answer is clear: Jesus is better than Jonah because he isn’t merely human but also divine.

 

Jesus wasn’t cast into the sea that day like Jonah, but he cast himself down to death when he went to the cross. Like Jonah’s metaphorical death that saved the sailors from the storm, Jesus’s death was necessary for our salvation. But while Jonah’s journey into the deep was a result of his own disobedience, Jesus’s death was the result of ours. Though sinless, he took on the sin of the world for our sake. As Jesus declared, “Something greater than Jonah is here” (Matt. 12:41).

 

Three Days in the Deep

 

Jonah’s plunge into the sea seemed final, but God appointed a great fish to swallow him. Jonah remained inside the belly of the fish for three days and three nights before it vomited him onto dry land.

 

Jesus later explained that Jonah was a sign pointing to himself: “For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth” (v. 40). Jonah was as good as dead, but Jesus truly died and was buried for three days before God raised him from the dead. Jesus fulfilled the sign of Jonah through his death and resurrection, purchasing life for all who believe.

 

Messengers of Mercy

 

With the mercy of a second chance, Jonah finally obeyed God’s command and went to Nineveh, calling out, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” (Jonah 3:4). The Ninevites believed God and repented of their evil ways with mourning and fasting. The God of mercy responded by relenting from the disaster he threatened.

 

But while Jonah’s journey into the deep was a result of his own disobedience, Jesus’s death was the result of ours.

 

Jonah had received God’s saving mercy just days before, but rather than rejoice in the Ninevites’ salvation, he was angry. He admitted he fled to Tarshish because he knew God would be merciful: “I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster” (4:2). Jonah delivered a message of judgment that led to repentance and mercy, but what he truly desired was wrath.

Jesus was a messenger of mercy, calling sinners to “repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt. 3:12). Unlike Jonah, Jesus longed to show mercy. He looked on sinners with compassion, seeing them as “harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd” (9:36). He was denied, betrayed, mocked, tortured, and murdered by those he came to save, yet even as he hung dying on the cross, he called out “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). Jonah begrudged God’s mercy; Jesus embodied it.

The story of Jonah is more than a Sunday school tale about a big fish—it’s a shadow of the Savior to come. Jesus is the true and better Jonah. In every act of disobedience and deliverance, resistance and redemption, Jonah points us to Jesus: the obedient Son, the sovereign Lord, the risen Savior, and the merciful Redeemer.

 

Christ on Every Page: How the Book of Jonah Points to Jesus

 

Chief Rabbi of Rome, his conversion to Catholicism

 

 

“Christianity is the integration of the Synagogue. The Synagogue was a promise, and Christianity is the fulfillment of that promise. The Synagogue pointed to Christianity: Christianity presupposes the Synagogue. So you see, one cannot exist without the other. What I converted to was the living Christianity”.

 Israel (Eugenio) Zolli

  

Taken from (1992): The Chief Rabbi's Conversion | Catholic Answers Magazine

 

On February 17, 1945, Israel Zolli, the Chief Rabbi of Rome, and his wife were baptized in the Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels by Msgr. Luigi Tralia. Zolli was the Chief Rabbi of Trieste for 35 years before coming to Rome. His deep learning in the Scriptures and Semitic literature may be seen in the many books he published. Catholic scholars publicly recognized this learning years before his conversion, when they invited him to assist in the work of the Pontifical Biblical Commission, and in the compiling of the Italian Catholic Encyclopedia.

 

The former Rabbi … was born in Poland. His mother was a German Jewess; and, on her side of the family there were actually 130 years of rabbinical tradition.

 

It is no surprise to find newspaper comment on Zolli’s action insolent, at least by implication. For instance, it was neither necessary, nor good sportsmanship, for certain newspapers to headline the story: “Voices, Rays Convert Rabbi to Catholicism.”

 

Moreover, it was disrespectful and offensive to millions to call the conversion a “religious switch,” since it was the outcome of at least 12 years of serious thinking and study by a serious-minded ecclesiastic of the Synagogue.

 

Only in the Associated Press dispatch by George Bria do we find any reference to the “voices and rays” supposed to have affected the Rabbi. Nevertheless, even if Zolli did use such expressions, they did not mean what the casual reader of the news was led to think, namely, that the convert was a dreamer or crackpot; and that this conversion was to be passed off with a pitying shake of the head. If Zolli did use the phrase, he was referring to interior inspirations he had received from the Light of the World. As Chief Rabbi of Rome, this sincere man had offered himself as hostage to the Nazi forces then occupying the city, if they would release several hundreds of his fellow Jews. Was that the conduct of a dreamer? Wasn’t it rather the action of a practical-minded, self-sacrificing pastor?

 

Jews, and especially the rabbis of the Orthodox group, do not become Christians light-mindedly, nor without powerful help from God. Experience has proved that a prospective convert from Judaism may nearly always look forward to severe boycotts from his family and friends and all former Jewish associates. If Orthodox, he may expect even father and mother to turn bitterly against him. They will put him out of their home and blot out his name from their will. All his Jewish business connections will be snapped, even if they mean his bread and butter. If the convert is a member of some milder branch of Judaism, such as the Conservative or Liberal, his penalty for conversion will be bad enough. Israel Zolli and his wife had to face most of those evils.

In reply to a suggestion that he had become a Catholic for gain, the courageous Rabbi said, “No selfish motive led me to do this. When my wife and I embraced the Church we lost everything we had in the world. We shall now have to look for work, and God will help us to find some.”

 

Therefore, when a Jew is willing to take such a cross as this as the price of his conversion, he makes his momentous break with the past only from rock-like conviction that he is doing what God wishes him to do, and only by the power of God.

 

This is clear in Zolli’s case, from his defense of his decision.

 

When the good Rabbi was asked why he had given up the Synagogue for the Church, he gave an answer that showed he had a keen understanding of his present position: “But I have not given it up. Christianity is the integration of the Synagogue. The Synagogue was a promise, and Christianity is the fulfillment of that promise. The Synagogue pointed to Christianity: Christianity presupposes the Synagogue. So you see, one cannot exist without the other. What I converted to was the living Christianity.”

 

“Then you believe that the Messiah has come?” the interviewer asked.

 

“Yes, positively,” replied Zolli. “I have believed it many years. And now I am so firmly convinced of the truth of it that I can face the whole world and defend my faith with the certainty and solidity of the mountains.”

 

“But why didn’t you join one of the Protestant denominations, which are also Christian?”

“Because protesting is not attesting. I do not intend to embarrass anyone by asking: ‘Why wait 1,500 years to protest?’

 

The Catholic Church was recognized by the whole Christian world as the true Church of God for 15 consecutive centuries. No man can halt at the end of those 1,500 years and say that the Catholic Church is not the Church of Christ without embarrassing himself seriously. I can accept only that Church which was preached to all creatures by my own forefathers, the Twelve who, like me, issued from the Synagogue.

“I am convinced that after this war, the only means of withstanding the forces of destruction and of undertaking the reconstruction of Europe will be the acceptance of Catholicism, that is to say, the idea of God and of human brotherhood through Christ, and not a brotherhood based on race and supermen, for ‘there is neither Jew nor Greek; neither bond nor free; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.’

 

 

 

Mary Magdalene as Apostle to the Apostles

 

 

“God uses a woman to announce the foundational truth of Christianity”.

 Pope Benedict XVI

  

Paige Furner wrote, on the feast day of St. Mary Magdalene, 22 July 2025:

St Mary Magdalene – Apostle to the Apostles and herald of the resurrection  - The Catholic Leader

 

St Mary Magdalene – Apostle to the Apostles and herald of the resurrection

By Paige Furner

 

TODAY we honour St Mary Magdalene as “Apostle to the Apostles,” remembered for her unwavering faith, her presence at both the Cross and the empty tomb and her transformative encounter with the Risen Lord. 

 

She is mentioned 12 times in the Gospels and is always portrayed as a devoted companion of Christ.  

 

Catholic News Agency says that she was “a woman who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out.” 

That healing marked the beginning of her discipleship. Pope Benedict XVI captured the essence of her transformation in a 2007 general audience. 

“A disciple of Christ is one who, in the experience of human weakness, has had the humility to ask for his help, has been healed by him, and has followed him closely,” he said. 

“Mary Magdalene’s loyalty led her to remain at the foot of the Cross when most of Jesus’ followers had fled.  

 

Early on Easter morning, she went to the tomb to anoint his body. When she found the stone rolled away and the body missing, she stood outside weeping.  

“In John’s Gospel, she says to the angels, ‘They have taken my Lord, and I don’t know where they laid him’.” 

 

It was then that she saw Jesus, but did not immediately recognise him. He spoke one word, her name: “Mary.”  

 

This simple, personal call opened her eyes and she became the first to witness the Resurrection and, as Pope Benedict XVI said, “returned to the disciples to announce to them the message of the Resurrection.” 

 

In that moment, Mary Magdalene was entrusted with the greatest proclamation of all time.  

 

The early Church would later call her Apostola Apostolorum – Apostle to the Apostles.  

As the Crossroads Initiative explains: “She becomes the first witness of the Resurrection and the first evangelist.” 

 

Recognising this, Pope Francis elevated her memorial to a feast day in 2016, on par with the liturgical celebrations of the apostles.  

 

Cardinal Arthur Roche, then Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship, wrote that the change “seeks to reflect more deeply upon the dignity of women, on the new evangelisation and on the greatness of the mystery of God’s Mercy.” 

 

The elevation also acknowledges her theological importance.  

 

She was not simply a background figure but an active and central voice in the early Christian community.  

 

St Mary Magdalene went from being possessed by seven demons to proclaiming the risen Christ to the Apostles themselves.  

 

She stands as a sign of hope and renewal for all, especially those who feel disqualified by their past. 

 

St Thomas Aquinas reflected on her privileged role, “she was an apostle to the apostles insofar as it was her task to announce our Lord’s resurrection to the disciples.” 

 

Her witness also invites reflection on the role of women in the Church—not just historically, but today.  

In elevating her memorial, the Church “intends to underline the relevance of this woman who showed great love for Christ and was greatly loved by Christ,” as Archbishop Roche wrote. 

 

Pope Benedict XVI highlighted this importance, noting that “God uses a woman to announce the foundational truth of Christianity.”  

 

St Mary Magdalene becomes a model not only for repentance but for proclamation.

She was not silenced or sidelined but sent. 

 

On her feast day, the Church is invited to hear Christ’s voice calling each of us by name.

Like St Mary Magdalene, we are sent to carry the unwavering loyalty towards our Lord.