“The Lord is king; let the earth rejoice. …The heavens proclaim His justice, and all people see His glory...
Reflections on the readings for the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord (August 6, 2022): DN 7:9-10,13-14; PS 97:1-2,5-6,9; 2PT 1:16-19; LK 9:28:36
MISSIO offers “Mission In Scripture” to nurture a missionary heart, providing reflections on the missionary themes in the readings of Sundays, Feast Days and Holy Days.
‘Because You, O Lord, are the Most High over all the earth.” (Psalm 97:1,6,9)
On this Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord, we celebrate the time when Jesus revealed His true glorified self, divine and human, to His three closest Apostles. In one of his letters, St. Peter recalls this event that he had experienced along with Ss. James and John. He wants everyone to understand that he is speaking as a genuine witness to what they saw and heard that day. “We made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. … For He received honor and glory from God the Father when that unique declaration came to Him from the majestic glory, ‘This is My Son, My beloved, with whom I am well pleased.’ We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven while we were with Him on the holy mountain’” (2 Peter 1:16-18). This momentous event itself happened on what is thought to be the top of Mt. Tabor in Galilee shortly after Jesus had first spoken about His own impending death. Surely, Christ wanted His disciples to more clearly understand that His life and purpose among us includes suffering, but that He is far more powerful than death.
In today’s Gospel description of the Transfiguration, we hear the Father not only proclaim Jesus to be His Son but also tells the Apostles to listen to Him. We cannot know what the three Apostles thought about that. After all, Jesus was their teacher, their master and they were His followers. Were they not already listening to Him? But for them and for us today, we can often hear something, even something important, and not really grasp it. We need to listen to our Redeemer with our senses, our mind, our spirit. And then we need to respond. Our openness to Him is a start. Next we need to heed His message and to share it with others. That is what Peter was trying to do in addressing the early Christians, reassuring them about all He learned from Christ Himself. And this included our Redeemer’s willingness to die in order that we may all live -- and live forever in glory through Him.
Suggested missionary action: Today, let us thank God for all He gives us from the depths of His love. He calls us not only to an everlasting life, but also to everlasting glory. In the transfigured Jesus we see into the resplendent future He has planned for each of us His precious children.