NOTES for Lev 21:1-24
As we have already seen, the figure of the Old Testament priest is an image, a type, of the holy mediator between God and the world. In this sense it serves as a prototype of Christ Himself, as the perfect and only Mediator, and also - because of our participation in Him - of all of us, as conduits of God's grace into the rest of the world.
From this perspective, the regulations about the priest's constant purity are very important for us - that is, about his constant readiness to stand before the ark of the covenant. The priest is a special person: he cannot become defiled even where this is allowed to an ordinary mortal, because for him there are no non-sacred, profane moments of life. Therefore the commandment about this special holiness becomes for us the ideal of unceasing prayer: dedication to God of every moment, every thought, every breath in and out.