Far from being a substitution for Israel, 305 the Church is in solidarity with it
Far from being a substitution for Israel, 305 the Church is in solidarity with it c) The People. The New Testament takes for granted that the election of Israel, the people of the covenant, is irrevocable: it preserves intact its prerogatives (Rm 9:4) and its priority status in history, in the offer of salvation (Ac ) and in the Word of God (). But God has also offered to Israel a “new covenant” (Jr ); this is now established through the blood of Jesus. 304 The Church is composed of Israelites who have accepted the new covenant, and of other believers who have joined them. As a people of the new covenant, the Church is conscious of existing only in virtue of belonging to Christ Jesus, the Messiah of Israel, and because of its link with the apostles, who were all Israelites.
