A LIGHT THAT SHINETH IN A DARK PLACE

A MESSAGE FOR THE FEAST OF THE TRANSFIGURATION

We are sometimes witnesses in life to events that leave us dumbstruck, where no words can appropriately be uttered to match the awe we feel at what we have seen.  Such was the case at the Transfiguration, where poor St. Peter, faced with the sight of the Son of God in all his majesty, could only manage to babble out the suggestion that the apostles build three tabernacles, one for Jesus, one for Moses and one for Elias.  No answer is given by our Lord to his thoughtless, if sincere, suggestion. 

In later years, St. Peter must have given a great deal more thought to the event he witnessed on the holy mount of Tabor.  In his second Epistle, quoted in today’s Mass, he refers to this vision with some of the wisdom and insight that the Descent of the Holy Ghost had no doubt inspired him with at Pentecost.  He speaks now of the honour and glory Jesus received that day from his Father in heaven, and the “more sure word of prophecy” that resembles “a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts.”

The Transfiguration of our Lord was indeed a prophecy of things to come.  It was a prophecy of the glory that was to be our Lord’s for all eternity when he would open the gates of heaven, rise from the dead, and ascend above the clouds to return to his Father’s throne whence he came.  And it was a prophecy that the dark place which is our own hearts will become the light of God’s glory, when we make the commitment to do what we must to reach the place our Lord has prepared for us in heaven.

As we gaze with the apostles on today’s vision of Christ in glory, we are called to our own glory.  We know what it takes to get there.  We know what we must do to reach the place in heaven that is our destiny.  We know this is the most important thing in our lives, the priceless pearl which we must purchase at the cost of everything else we have.  But our poor human nature is so weak that we are reluctant to do what’s necessary.  We refuse, not defiantly, but passively, to embrace our cross and follow the laws of God—passively, by simply giving in to our own fallen nature, by simply doing what we want.  It’s not that we hate God, it’s just that we don’t love him enough.  We risk our eternal salvation for the sake of the few snippets of ephemeral pleasure we’re able to enjoy in this life instead. 

The purpose of the Transfiguration is to show us that there is something bigger and better than ourselves.  That there truly is a God, a majestic, divine Being, and that we must be willing to act, not reluctantly but enthusiastically, to do whatever it takes to spend our eternity with that God in heaven.  Let us welcome the opportunities we have to sacrifice our own will for God’s, let us pray that the day star who is the Son of God might arise in our hearts and be the “light that shineth in a dark place.”