Jesus is Different (And So Are We)
Aug 6: Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord
When I was growing up, and for at least 450 years before that, there were only three sets of Mysteries of the Rosary. Now there are four!
Today, we’re celebrating the feast that is contemplated in the fourth of these new1 Luminous Mysteries—the Transfiguration.
Pope St. John Paul II pointed out how the transfiguration mirror not only the Baptism in the Jordan2 (the first Luminous Mystery) but also the Wedding Feast at Cana3 (the second). These parallels help reinforce each other, and reinforce our own understanding of who Jesus is and how we should respond to Him.
Reading 1
Dn 7:9-10, 13-14
As I watched:
Thrones were set up and the Ancient One took his throne. His clothing was bright as snow, and the hair on his head as white as wool; his throne was flames of fire, with wheels of burning fire. A surging stream of fire flowed out from where he sat; Thousands upon thousands were ministering to him, and myriads upon myriads attended him. The court was convened and the books were opened.
As the visions during the night continued, I saw:
One like a Son of man coming, on the clouds of heaven; When he reached the Ancient One and was presented before him, The one like a Son of man received dominion, glory, and kingship; all peoples, nations, and languages serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that shall not be taken away, his kingship shall not be destroyed.
As you can see by the notation at the top of this section, we skip a couple of verses in the middle, which I find interesting. They’re about terrifying beasts, with iron teeth and ten horns. The Son of Man slays the beast, takes away its dominion over the world. That’s why He is ascending the throne in this passage.
The phrase “son of man” is ambiguous in Daniel. Christians obviously interpret it as referring to Jesus, the Messiah. But it’s also possible to read it as simply meaning “human.” We, with God’s help, are able to overcome our animal nature. We are made in God’s image, not nature’s.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 97:1-2, 5-6, 9
R. The Lord is king, the Most High over all the earth.
The LORD is king; let the earth rejoice;
let the many islands be glad.
Clouds and darkness are round about him,
justice and judgment are the foundation of his throne.
R. The Lord is king, the Most High over all the earth.
The mountains melt like wax before the LORD,
before the LORD of all the earth.
The heavens proclaim his justice,
and all peoples see his glory.
R. The Lord is king, the Most High over all the earth.
Because you, O LORD, are the Most High over all the earth,
exalted far above all gods.
R. The Lord is king, the Most High over all the earth.
We praise God, for coming in human form to take His place as the Lord of Lords over the whole Earth. Peter, James, and John saw a vision of this, of what is to come.
That’s why Peter offered to build tents—that’s how his ancestors worshipped God when they traveled with Him, “clouds and darkness ‘round about him,” in the desert.
Reading 2
2 Pt 1:16-19
Beloved: We did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that unique declaration came to him from the majestic glory, "This is my Son, my beloved, with whom I am well pleased."
We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven while we were with him on the holy mountain. Moreover, we possess the prophetic message that is altogether reliable. You will do well to be attentive to it, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.
Who is Jesus? God’s beloved Son. As I wrote in the intro, we’re told this at Jesus’ baptism and at the transfiguration. John the Baptist was executed before he could make an account of all that he saw (if he ever planned to), but Peter was able to write4 his letters around 30-50 years after witnessing these events.
Eyewitness testimony was the best you could do in ancient times, without recordings and photographs. That also meant people took giving witness very seriously. You staked your reputation and honor on honest testimony. The apostles, including Peter, staked their very lives on the truth of their testimony.
Alleluia
Mt 17:5c
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased;
listen to him.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
So, one day, years ago, I was talking with my college roommate about God. He was agnostic about the whole religion thing, and he asked me, “OK, even if God exists, how would we know anything about him?”
I thought a moment and said, “Well, just look around. The same way you can learn about an artist by studying at his art, you can learn about God by studying creation.”
“Like, you can watch a Spielberg movie and know he has daddy issues?”
“Did you just compare Steven Spielberg to God? And all of creation to Jaws?”
“And the Lord said to Noah…
Gospel
Mt 17:1-9
Jesus took Peter, James, and his brother, John, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them; his face shone like the sun and his clothes became white as light. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, conversing with him.
Then Peter said to Jesus in reply, "Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."
While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud cast a shadow over them, then from the cloud came a voice that said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him."
When the disciples heard this, they fell prostrate and were very much afraid. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, "Rise, and do not be afraid." And when the disciples raised their eyes, they saw no one else but Jesus alone.
As they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, "Do not tell the vision to anyone until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead."
To bring this back around to the beginning, “This is my beloved Son… listen to him” is more or less what Mary tells the servants before Jesus’ very first public miracle.
Ultimately, that’s the point of the Transfiguration for us, thousands of years later, reading eye witness accounts. God wants us to know that Jesus has the full authority of the Almighty, and we should listen to Him.
By Church standards, the rosary is relatively new. There have been “prayer ropes” since the 3rd century, but the oldest rosary in the modern sense is probably the 1500s (although theologian Andreas Heinz discovered a kind of rosary that was dated to 1300AD). Pius V officially recognized the rosary in 1569, and established the 15 traditional mysteries (grouped in fives). Since we prayed a decade of Hail Maries per mystery, that added up to 150 Hail Maries, one for each of the 150 psalms, which created a nice symetry.
Or dictate, depending on who you listen to.