[Announce] Transfiguration

[Robert Waldrop]

Peter, James, and John knew Jesus.  They had walked with him, listened to him, spoke with him, even argued with him on occasion.  They had just climbed a mountain with him.  I imagine them getting to the top, looking around, sitting down to rest, maybe taking a drink of water.

And then. . . something changed.  They looked at Jesus, and they saw Jesus -- but now his clothing was a dazzling white, his face shone with the glory of God -- and even more remarkably, there were two more men on the mountain top, Elijah and Moses.  Mark's gospel; says that Peter was so terrified, he hardly knew what to say.  And indeed, what was there to say in the face of such a sight?

But wait, there's more.  A great cloud filled the sky, and the voice of God was heard -- "This is my beloved Son -- listen to him."  And then, as suddenly as the vision was there, it was gone.

I often think of Transfiguration when I see someone particularly down and out on the streets.  I imagine them in robes of shining white, with the lines of pain on their faces replaced with dignity and glory.  Who knows who we are seeing when we see homeless people in the streets.  We are quick to judge them as unworthy.  Are they not poor in a nation which glorifies wealth?  

Transfiguration teaches us to not be so quick to judge by first appearances.  All that we see is not all that is. The supernatural reality is as real as the natural reality.  We can see the supernatural reality as easily as we see the natural reality -- so long as we have "eyes that can see". And when God says -- "Listen to my Son" -- if we have "ears that can hear", we will hear what Jesus has to say to us. That of course takes courage, because if we listen to what Jesus says, we will inevitably come to want to do what Jesus tells us to do.  And that is a journey both terrifying and glorious, fraught with comfort and challenge, a yoke that is easy, a burden that is light.
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