Mt 17:1-9
Dear Friends, Even though the Transfiguration story is in all three cycles of our Lenten celebration, at first glance and even third glace it is hard to figure out how it fits the somber message of Lent. It does indeed fit the purpose of Lent. This is a season to help us prepare by fasting, prayer and almsgiving for the celebration of the death and resurrection of Jesus. The central mystery is the event of the three holy days of the Triduum. Lent is all about getting us ready to enter into the mystery of God’s love revealed in Christ Crucified and Christ risen.The Transfiguration is a continuation of Christ’s question in Mt 16:13, who do you say I am? Peter got part of it right but floundered when Jesus challenged him with the idea of a suffering Messiah. In Peter’s eyes, Jesus was “the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” (Mt 16:16) How could He suffer? Jesus just deepened Peter’s confusion with the command, “Get behind me, Satan!” (Mt 16:23) Peter was the first. However, the mystery of a divine Savior on the Cross continues to baffle us today. That is why the church calls us to prayer and fasting yet again to enter into the central truth of our faith in the events of Holy Week. The transfiguration is a reminder that this suffering Messiah is truly divine.
In the actual story of the Transfiguration, Jesus reveals that he is comfortable in the divine world as well as the everyday reality of Galilee. When he calmed the storm’s winds and waves and when he walked on the water he displayed other examples of his divinity.
Once again, Peter is a perfect model for us: he does not get it nor do we. He wants to build the tents and, by the way, cancel the trip to Jerusalem and what he sees as nothing but destructive possibilities.
The Father actually interrupts Peter: “while he was speaking … then a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.” (Mt. 17:5)
The point is clear. Jesus said he is going to Jerusalem to suffer and die. We need to be ready to take our own cross and die to ourselves following Him on the road to Jerusalem. The “Listen to him” is the message of Lent. Like Peter, we need to put away our plans to build tents and face the reality of following Jesus on his terms.
“Listen to him” is an invitation into Jesus’ message. As often as we have heard the story, it still holds the seeds of light and wisdom, of hope and tenderness for us. We are always on the edge of our human frailty and mortality. Whether it is the brokenness of our relationships, the consequences of sin, or the corruption of our world, we need to search the depths of our hearts and “Listen to Him!” He will reveal anew that the last word is not sickness, injustice, prejudice, the foibles of nature’s awesome power or death. The last word revealed in the Crucified and Risen Christ is life and the victory of love. Once again, our journey to Jerusalem in Lent and, more so in our life, is an invitation to enter into the mystery that joins the Divine and suffering and leads to the victory of Easter.
“Listen to him” is a plea to open the eyes and ears of our heart to embrace new possibilities of life and reconciliation, fresh opportunities to make the Gospel take flesh in our time and in our life. Our commitment to follow on the road to Jerusalem will bring us through death to life once again as we get ready to celebrate the Alleluia of God’s victory.
