Fr. Michael Williams

St Luke’s gospel is the story of Jesus making His way from Galilee to Jerusalem; it is the journey Jesus makes from His home town to the political and religious capital of the region. It is our Lord’s pilgrimage to the holy city, where He will undertake the great saving events, which we celebrate during Holy Week – the death and Resurrection of the Lord.

The gospel today shows Jesus taking three of his disciples onto a mountain, to break the routine of the journey towards Jerusalem. Whilst on the mountain the disciples “saw his glory”. Our Lord’s “face was changed and his clothing became brilliant as lightening”. It’s a moment of light and radiance amidst the pain and suffering which is to follow. It’s also an opportunity to reveal who exactly Jesus is. The voice of the Father cries out: “This is my Son, the Chosen One. Listen to him”. The wonderful experience on the mountain is so amazing that Peter wants it to last indefinitely; he wants to set up base and stay there amidst the wonder. He says: “Master, it is wonderful for us to be here; so let us make three tents”. But if they had all stayed on the mountain basking in the glory of God, there would have been no redemption, and it would have been avoiding reality. Jesus had to go to Jerusalem, and to Calvary.

When Jesus came down the mountain he set his face like flint towards Jerusalem, towards the cross that was awaiting him. Jesus is making his way to Jerusalem to suffer humiliation and crucifixion. He tells his disciples that he is going to Jerusalem to “suffer grievously…and to be put to death”. However, the journey he makes will culminate not in his crucifixion, but in his resurrection. Luke’s gospel finishes with Jesus of the resurrection. The gospel today gives us a glimpse of the resurrection even before it happens. Jesus’ death is not the end; New life will follow. If we didn’t occasionally receive glimpses of glory and new life on the road, we could easily become despondent and give up on the way. The lights we receive come in all sorts of different ways, but we need them to help us persevere. Jesus gave the disciples a vision of his glory so that they would persevere in the years ahead.

The story of the transfiguration may seem a strange one to be told during Lent. But we need reminding of who Jesus is, and we also constantly need snapshots of the resurrection to strengthen us on our journey. In the Letter to the Philippians, Saint Paul reminds us that one-day we will share in Christ’s glorious body. “The Lord Jesus…will transfigure these wretched bodies of ours into copies of his glorious body”. We need reminders of this reality, otherwise the pain and difficulties could crush us.

But we also need to be open to God and give God a chance, so that he can reveal himself to us in our daily lives.

The road we travel in life is often a long and rugged one, but there will be moments of amazement and wonder on that journey, if we are open to those moments. We need the special moments to strengthen us on the journey, a journey in which there is a cross. A transfiguration, a moment of wonder and awe, can strengthen us on the journey. A journey which is heading toward the resurrection, but there can be no resurrection without the cross. St. Rose of Lima once said, “Without the burden of affliction one cannot arrive at the height of glory…without the cross there is no road to heaven”.

The Holy Mass we celebrate today is a foretaste of the heavenly banquet. It’s a time when heaven and earth are wedded together, just like heaven and earth was wedded together on the mountain of the Transfiguration. Let’s pray that as we leave this holy place today we will be strengthened to continue in our journey of life and all that that entails, knowing that our lives on earth are a pilgrimage to the cross and the Resurrection.