2nd Sunday of Lent
In the Jewish tradition, the faith of Abraham was legendary. Abraham was living comfortably in his own confined tribal lands; The Lord asks him to make the 'leap of faith', to risk all and move on to an unknown land and an unknown future. And the promise was, 'I will make of you a great nation.' This leap of faith must at some stage be personalised by every individual on his or her faith journey. There are no certainties on this side of the grave. You meet up with a partner; you hang around with them for a while; at some stage, you arrive at a fork in the road; you either walk on with them, or you take a different path and walk the road alone, quite happy with your lot. You may also sit of the ditch and mock those who have been foolish enough to commit themselves to an unknown future. If you opt to walk on with your partner, you must make an act of faith. Because you are both, by and large, walking into the unknown. In a religious sense, the same pattern can be observed. We have absolutely no scientific proof that this way of life is leading anywhere. The man Jesus Christ, whom we meet in the scriptures, has issued an invitation to us to join him on the journey. All we have to go on is what we find there in the scriptures. We either take our chances and strive to walk with him, or else we place our eggs in some other guru's basket.
In our gospel reading, we are told of three men who accept his invitation. Jesus invited Peter, James and John up to the mountain to pray, we are told. He would later take that same three to the Mount of Olives and to the gates of Gethsemane on the night before he died. Today's gospel is seen as a preparation for the dark future, a strengthening of the disciples so that they might endure the ordeal that lay ahead. As our While the incident did not have the desired effect (all three either fell asleep or ran away when the crisis came), it did confirmed the three Apostles in this conviction: in the person of Jesus, they were dealing with a reality that reached beyond human experience. They were dealing here, not merely with a social reformer or a political visionary; they were dealing with a man who had a unique relationship with God. Moreover, he was telling these three men and all who would follow them subsequently, that they could have this same relationship.
For the three friends, it was a thrilling experience, so thrilling that they wanted to remain on there forever. "Let us make three tents," said Peter, "one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." From Peter's point of view, life was a dream. Let us continue to inhabit that dream. But Jesus insists that the burden of reality must be embraced. The good news is good news for the whole human race, not reserved for the elite few. So the apostles had to come down from the hill with Jesus.
While the transfiguration was an extraordinary event, it wasn't an isolated incident. It was entirely consistent with the way Jesus lived out his life and worked with the people. Through his work and his healing, he transfigured many people. From the very beginning he outlined his aims: to make the deaf hear, the dumb speak and the lame walk. In other less dramatic instances, he touched people at the very depth of their souls. All four gospels are full of examples of the transfiguring power of Jesus. But we must be prepared also to accompany him down through the valley of tears and on to the hill of Calvary. If we are to be transfigured by his message we must do strange and sometimes painful things indeed: like forgiving our enemies and praying for them, maintaining hope in a world that sometimes seems hopeless, turning the other cheek, giving away our coat to the man who has none, and so on. This is where the shadow of the cross intrudes in a practical way. The message learned on the mountain must be lived in the valleys. Through living his message we are being gradually transfigured. But we hold out the hope that some day all will be utterly transfigured. However, we must leave the choosing of that day to him. Our challenge is to remain with Christ on whatever hill, or in whatever valley, we find ourselves. Because we are assured that he will be there waiting for us.