August 6th,
2017: THE TRANSFIGURATION OF THE LORD
Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14; 2 Peter 1:16-19; Matthew 17:1-9.
The event described in today’s gospel,
Jesus’ transfiguration, is mysterious. Like Jesus’ resurrection, the
transfiguration stands on the threshold between this world and the next. Mark’s account is rich in symbols.
The unnamed “high mountain” is the
first symbol. In the thought-world of the Bible, mountains symbolize remoteness
from ordinary worldly affairs, and nearness to God. Moses received the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai . Elijah, who appears with Moses on the mountain of Jesus ’
transfiguration, experienced the climax of his
career on Mount Carmel , in his contest with
the prophets of the false god Baal. (1 Kings 18) Jesus went up a mountain to
call his twelve apostles. (Mark 3:13) John’s gospel says that he withdrew to a
mountain to pray following the feeding of the great crowd in the wilderness.
(6:15)
The dazzling whiteness of Jesus’
clothes symbolizes God’s glory, which (as God told Moses) no mortal can look on
and live (Ex. 33:20). We find this same symbolism in the Book of Revelation,
which says that in heaven the blessed will be “robed in white” (Rev. 3:4f).
The presence of Moses and Elijah, the
two greatest heroes of Jesus’ people in the Old Testament, points to Jesus as
the one who fulfils all his people’s hopes. Jesus is greater than either of
them, greater even than Moses and Elijah together.
Peter is so fascinated by this
wonderful experience that he wants to prolong it. His proposal, to erect three
tents, is reminiscent of the Jewish Feast of Tents, a joyful autumn celebration
that recalled the time when God’s people lived in tents during their desert
wanderings. That feast also looked forward to the joy of the end-time, when God
would visit his people and complete the blessings promised in the covenant he
had made with Moses in the wilderness.
Peter’s suggestion about the three
tents is immediately followed by the descent of the cloud. That is the most
striking symbol of all. Repeatedly in
Scripture a cloud is a sign of God’s presence. There was a cloud on Mount Sinai when Moses received the Ten Commandments (Ex.
24:13). A cloud received the risen Lord into heaven at Jesus’ ascension (Acts
1:9). Now the voice from the cloud speaks the same words uttered at Jesus’
baptism: “This is my beloved Son.”
All these biblical symbols suggest in
Jesus’ transfiguration meanings impossible to convey in a literal description.
Like the resurrection, the transfiguration is a mystery because, though it
happened in time, it gives a glimpse into a world beyond time. For a brief
moment, there on the mountain, the veil between time and eternity, between
earth and heaven, was lifted. Jesus’ three friends catch a momentary glimpse of
the invisible, spiritual world of God. And the concluding words spoken from the
cloud – “Listen to him” – express the
significance of this mystery for Jesus’ friends: not only for the three present
there on the mountain, but for all the friends of Jesus, ourselves
included.
We, the friends and followers of Jesus Christ,
are the company of those who listen to his words. Jesus does not grant to us,
any more than he granted Peter, James, and John, the continuous vision of his
glory. We live not on the mountain-top of great spiritual experiences, but in
the valley of life’s ordinary duties. There we do not look for dazzling visions
from beyond. Instead we listen for God’s voice.
How does God speak to us? He speaks in
his Holy Word, in the teaching of his Church, through the circumstances of
daily life, in the promptings of conscience, and in the needs of those whom we
encounter along life’s way. In the world to come it will be different. There we
shall see God. In this world,
however, we live by faith, not by sight.
That is the way Jesus lived. How
bitterly his faith was tested as he passed through his own dark valley we learn
from his anguished cry on the cross; “My God, my God, why have you forsaken
me?” (Mt 27:46). Jesus calls us to follow him on the way of the cross: to
endure whatever trials and sufferings life may bring. The way of the cross will
lead us, as it led Jesus, through suffering to death. But beyond death for us,
as for him, is resurrection to life eternal. Then faith will give way to sight.
Then our earthly pilgrimage beneath an often overcast sky will yield to the
uninterrupted vision of God’s glory. We shall have reached our true homeland,
the heavenly city, which (as we read in the final book of the Bible) needs
neither sun nor moon, “for the glory of God gives it light, and the lamp is the
Lamb” (Rev. 21:23).
Now, however, is the time not for
seeing, but for hearing. We listen for the Father’s voice and heed his command,
as he speaks to us the words first uttered to those three friends of Jesus on
the mountain two thousand years ago;
“This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.”
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