Peter is at first speechless,
then finally able to get the words out, he wants the moment to last forever by
making a permanent dwelling to commemorate the “ecstatic” experience, (Mark 9:2-9). He was overcome with joy, the likes of which are impossible to effectively
describe in mere words. Peter’s vision of the transfigured Christ, radiant in the
brightest of light and surrounded by Moses and Elijah is perhaps, a glimpse into
another dimension.
Nancy Rockwell writes that
pure bliss is nearly impossible to describe, “...And, though we are urged to
follow our bliss, it’s hard to imagine what bliss would be, except an answer to
our inarticulate longings. Perhaps that is why, in stories, transfiguring
moments arrive as unexpected joy. We cannot, after all, make them happen,
but when they occur, we never, ever, forget them.” (The Bite in the Apple, February 8, 2015)
In Mark's Gospel, a story so full of secrecy, the Transfiguration says that Jesus has plans to be conspicuous. What he will disclose is not necessarily the secrets of the universe or the meaning of life; rather, it's himself. He may be hard to see clearly in all his intricate detail, considering the radiant glare, but he's surely there. At the Transfiguration then, we are in the presence of delight. Delight as an aspect of the holy. Meditation on Mark 9 can elevate this sense of delight.
The Transfiguration does not sketch an image of intimidating purity or self-satisfied and inviolable majesty. It is tender holiness. The scene is a reminder that holiness, as a characteristic of God, is participatory and shared. God loves, so God interacts. This holiness expresses itself in self-giving, for that is what happens when someone adores and celebrates someone else.
As God expresses this delight, we gain a little more insight into the divine heart and take delight in Jesus, for God does. At the Transfiguration, then, Jesus stands in impressive company, sharing the moment with two others who know what it is to share close communion with God and to breach that seemingly unyielding boundary between life and death.
The bright light of the Transfiguration affirms life, a light that shines ahead into Lent to keep that season in perspective, never without hope and confidence. This light speaks a promise that God is here.
(WorkingPreacher.org.2015 Matt Skinner)
The promise of the Transfiguration is that, in Jesus, the glory of God may be experienced by mortals in this life as a foretaste of eternity. We have all experienced fleeting glimpses of God, moments when we felt a depth of peace and rightness that captured us and momentarily held our attention. There are probably moments of revelation that we have missed, too, because of the demanding notice that the world claims on us.
ReplyDeletePeter doesn't miss this one, and he wants to make it last. Jesus makes it clear that the work of the kingdom is his primary purpose, and that the disciples are called to join with him in making the kingdom visible throughout the world.
I offer this viewpoint: Here we see Jesus, Love incarnate -- that is, Love present in the flesh of and subject to human nature -- fully and willingly surrendering inherent sense of human self (ego) to the radiant flow of Love (God's eternal energy.) Here, I personally see that Jesus exemplifies/models radiant life/Life when ego quits its past and present agendas - yup,the egotistical, "I am. I've done. I can do, I want to be -- because I'm a good person". Joy and energy are found in surrendering self to Loving Energy. In surrendering I am to I Am (ethereal, Unconditional Love). We are as weak as we are strong, as St. Paul says. Be as strong as you are weak.
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