The gospel of Transfiguration Sunday (Matt 17:1-9) culminates the season of Epiphany. It is the penultimate moment of revealing the nature of Jesus as God’s incarnate Son. (The ultimate breakthrough is, of course, the Resurrection.) 

The Transfiguration gospel begins, Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. 

That is, six days after he had told his disciple that: 

he must go to Jerusalem and … and undergo great suffering and be killed, and on the third day be raised... Peter…began to rebuke him, saying… This must never happen to you.’ But he … said to Peter, ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling-block to me; for you are not setting your mind on divine things but on human things.’

Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. (Matt 16: 21-28) 

It had been a sobering set of statements. This morning’s gospel is its counter-weight. 

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The gospel continues, and he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white.

What a juxtaposition! Six days earlier he had been talking about his death and resurrection. It is clear that Peter heard only about suffering and death. When Jesus shone in glory in front of his closest companions he underlined the truth of the things he had told them about… including his resurrection … a mention that they had seemed to miss. 

… And his face shone like the sun echoes two Old testament passages. Exodus 34:29 tells us that when Moses came down from Mount Sinai…with the two tablets of the covenant in his hand, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God.

The other passage is Moses' blessing: The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace. (Numbers 6:24-26) Jesus’ shining face may have reminded Peter, James and John of these events and this “peace blessing” of Moses.

This was a preview of Jesus’ glory at the end of time when all the people of the world will assemble. It wasn’t just an internal transformation. It was an external manifestation of his divine self, a particular blessing to Peter, James and John on whom his face shone. 

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Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. Moses and Elijah were two of the great patriarchs of Hebrew scripture. Moses had led the Israelites out of Egypt and met with God. Elijah had been taken straight to heaven on a chariot of fire (2 Kings 2:11) Their appearance with Jesus validated Jesus’ role as the fulfillment of the prophecies.

The simultaneous presence of these two with Jesus was a stunningly miraculous time-warp. Moses had lived 1300-1400 years BCE. Elijah lived about 900 years before Christ. They had never reappeared after their time on earth, let alone together. This event looked forward to the ultimate working out of Jesus’ kingdom when the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and all the tribes of the earth will … see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. (Matt 24:30)

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Then Peter said to Jesus, ‘Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, we will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.’

Some read Peter’s comment as a silly suggestion that was inappropriate for such a momentous event. Others hear it as an attempt at hospitality in a unique situation when they had not been prepared for what they saw. 

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While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!’ When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear.

Starlight had announced that Jesus was the Anointed One at the Epiphany. Wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, ‘Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.’…After leaving Herod, the star, that they had seen at its rising went ahead of them, until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the child with his mother Mary, they were overwhelmed with joy. (Matt 2:1, 9-11). 

This announcement by Jesus’ Father from the bright cloud affirmed Jesus in the strongest terms. And perhaps, in a nod to Peter, the voice added, listen to him! It repeated the words of Jesus’ baptism when a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.’ (Matt 3:17) 

This moment was second only to the resurrection when “the Father gave the Son's life a permanent, redeemed, final, and definitive validity” in the words of the theologian, Karl Rahner.

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The gospel concludes,

But Jesus came and touched them, saying, ‘Get up and do not be afraid.’ And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone. As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, ‘Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.’

‘What! Your face shone! Moses and Elijah came and talked with you! A voice came from a bright cloud saying that you are the Beloved Son….and you don’t want us to tell anyone? What do you mean about “after you have been raised from the dead?” Are we going to go through that again?’  One can only imagine what was going through the minds of Peter, James and John.

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  • When he saw Jesus transfigured, did Peter reacall Jesus’ words from six days earlier that he would undergo great suffering and be killed? Did he also remember Jesus saying that he would be raised? Did the Transfiguration leave him again saying, This must never happen to you! Is it possible that Peter could not make sense of it until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead?
  • Had you been with Peter James and John on the mountain, what would you have said to Jesus, Moses and Elijah? ‘Can I make you some tea?’, ‘How did you get here?’ ‘Are you really Moses and Elijah?’, ‘Now I believe that you are the Christ!’. Some might criticize Peter for his suggestion, but, if one puts themselves in his shoes, the challenge of what to say is evident. 
  • The theme of Donna Tartt’s book, The Goldfinch, is ‘our secrets define us’. If that is true, do you imagine that Jesus was asking Peter, James and John to keep his transfiguration secret and to reflect on it? Did he want them to internalize the experience and the words of his Father, rather than exclaim them to others in amazement? What other interpretation might you give to his instruction to Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead. (In this morning’s second reading (2 Peter 1:16-21) Peter testified that, we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honour and glory from God the Father when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory, saying, ‘This is my Son, my Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.)

Peace
Michael