At this theophany we see Jesus talking with Moses and Elijah. We understand that here Moses represents the Law, and Elijah the prophets, and together they represent the revelation of the Old Testament which now is to be fulfilled in the Godman Jesus.
Recall how both Moses and Elijah saw God. But not in all His glory, not in all His goodness. In Exodus 33 we read how God placed Moses in a cleft of a rock and covered him with His hand as he passed by. In 1 Kings we read how Elijah hid his face in his cloak for the Lord was not in the wind, nor the earthquake or the fire, but in the mysterious ‘light silent sound’. Though both men were to experience the Glory of God on Mount Sinai, each was to do so indirectly as no man can see God’s face and live. These two theophanies are reminiscent of another encounter with the divine. Recall how Mark writes in Chapter 6 that one time the disciples were caught in a storm and Jesus comes walking on the water, and, as the passage says, “means to pass by.” As with Moses and Elijah the Lord passes by. But now something new is going to happen. Fearful they are seeing a ghost Jesus turns to them and says, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” And he gets into the boat with them.
What Moses and Elijah saw partially during their lives, Peter, James, and John, were to witness fully. In Jesus Christ, the Lord no longer passes by but visits with Moses and Elijah, with Peter, James, and John, and with us. He comforts us, gets in the boat with us. In his humanity Jesus, who is undeniably God, is fully and completely present to us, and we can look upon him face to face. In the Luminous Mysteries, Pope Saint John Paul II has gifted us with this tremendous meditation – Jesus fully God and fully man.
Matthew, in sharing this story, is presenting Jesus as the divine Lord, the fulfillment of the Old Testament and to whom dominion, glory and kingship are given. We too will see his kingship, but in the meantime, he approaches us in the ordinary and every day, not passing by, but touching us, allaying our fears, and choosing to travel with us. In our life journey we are given the opportunity to climb the mountain with our Lord and to experience the glow of grace in all things. If the sacraments allow us to encounter the King, then it is in our prayer life that we meet Christ as a friend and travel companion. And it is by means of our prayer life that we come to the simple realization the transfiguration is also meant for us – literally. For it is through Him, and with Him, and in Him, that we too are transfigured. For most of us perhaps not in a quick instant, but in the journey of life, accompanied by the rhythm of regular and deep prayer. A prayer life which prepares us for an ever-closer friendship with our Lord, a prayer life aimed at our own transfiguration. Deeply lived, it heals us of our hurts, reforms us of our sinful and selfish inclinations, frees us of attachments, and the frustrations brought on by the world. In prayer we learn how to cease doing evil and learn how to do good for no other reason than to love the Lord more fully. By means of prayer and meditation we too can ascend mount Tabor and, God willing, even encounter the ‘light silent sound.’ Our time will come to see the Lord in all his glory, to see his light penetrating all things and see the glorious beauty of his creation freed from the darkness of sin. In the meantime, he offers us his companionship with gentleness and a familial concern. So, we journey on and do so praying devoutly, for it is His greatest desire for us to meet him on the mountain and perhaps too along the way.
Deacon Peter, Arlington, Massachusetts
August 6, 2023
Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14, Psalm 97:1-2, 5-6, 9, 2 Peter 1:16-19, Matthew 17:1-9
