“And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain apart. And he transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his garments became white as light. And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him…He was still speaking, when lo, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him,’” (Mt.17:1-3, 5). [1]
Today is the feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord. This scene on Mount Tabor evokes a sense of wonder, as it did for Peter, James and John. They “fell on their faces and were filled with awe,” (Mt.17:6). Benedict XVI describes the Transfiguration as revealing ‘the splendor of Truth and Love.’ In a manifestation of light that recalls the cloud that overshadowed Moses on Mount Sinai, Jesus’ face shone like the sun. This manifestation confirmed Jesus’ divinity and expressed an essential aspect of God, light, which appears throughout salvation history whenever God is near. In the Transfiguration, we are invited to meditate on the ‘mystery of God’s light,’ Jesus’ divinity and our role as children of the light. [2][3][4]
“Bless the Lord, O my soul! O Lord my God, thou art very great! Thou art clothed with honor and majesty, who coverest thyself with light as with a garment, who hast stretched out the heavens like a tent, who hast laid the beams of thy chambers on the waters, who makest the clouds thy chariot, who ridest on the wings of the wind, who makest the winds thy messengers, fire and flame thy ministers” (Ps 104:1-3). [5]
Written by Sarah Ciotti
Reviewed by Fr. Hugh Feiss, OSB, STD
[1] Revised Standard Version, s.v., “Matthew, The Gospel According to.”
[2] Ibid.
[3] Pope Benedict XVI, Angelus, March 12, 2012.
[4] Pope Benedict XVI, Angelus, August 6, 2006.
[5] Revised Standard Version, s.v., “The Psalms.”