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PEREGRINUS...
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Lenten Reflection...  Last Sunday our gospel was Luke's account of the Temptations in the wilderness. Next Sunday it is Luke's account of the Transfiguration, a story with interesting parallels to the Temptations — but also with interesting contrasts. Drawing Apart from the World The parallels between the Temptation in the wilderness and the Transfiguration are obvious. Both stories involve Jesus drawing apart from the world — for the Temptations, he goes into the wilderness; for the Transfiguration, he ascends a mountain. But, as Ian pointed out in his commentary on the Temptations, the wilderness for the first-century audience for whom the evangelists wrote was a hostile and dangerous place. Mountains did not have the same connotations. In scripture, mountains are where people go to be closer to God. The actual mountain is unnamed in all the gospel accounts of the Transfiguration. Commentators have suggested Mount Tabor or Mount Hermon, but the namelessness of the mountain is probably deliberate. What matters about the mountain is not where it was, but what it stood for. It recalls the revelations that God made to Moses, which took place on Mount Sinai. It also recalls Elijah's encounters with the "still, small voice" of God at "Horeb, the Mountain of God". And it evokes Mount Zion, the place of hope. . The Son and the Father Both stories also involve a miraculous manifestation of divine favour — on the mountain, a voice from the clouds identifies the "beloved Son" and urges us to "listen to him", repeating the proclamation first heard at the baptism of Jesus by John. But, again, there is a contrast as well as a parallel. In the earlier story, Jesus goes into the wilderness apparently as a response to his baptism, and the events that occur there. This time, Jesus is proactive; he ascends the mountain and prays, and the divine revelation seems to be a response to his prayer. In the later story, then, Jesus appears as much more aware of, and much more assertive of, his Sonship. We see this also in the fact that, in the earlier story, Jesus was led in to the desert by the Spirit. This time, he goes himself. Other Contrasts
Revelation And what exactly is it that is revealed at the Transfiguration? Jesus's clothing becomes "sparkling white", and the apostles accompanying him "saw his glory". It's tempting to see this as one of the encounters with the resurrected Jesus, perhaps transferred back into the ministry of Jesus by the evangelists to make or underline some point. But the imagery, the details all refer to the Jewish tradition and to the Old Testament. Moses and Elijah, for instance, do not feature in any of the resurrection stories, but they play a prominent role here. And in resurrection stories the risen Jesus does not appear shining or "glorious"; he is more often unremarkable and, at least initially, unrecognised. The "glory", the bright light and the white clothes all refer to Jewish imagery of the resurrection — not the resurrection of Jesus, but the general resurrection which the Jews of Jesus' time expected, and associated with the triumph of the Messiah. In Daniel 12, for example, the resurrected will "shine brightly like the splendour of the firmament". And what they shine with is the reflected glory of God. So in the transfiguration, Jesus unites the past (Moses and Elijah) with the future (his own resurrection, and the general resurrection), the world and the heavens, without dissolving the distinction between them. He becomes the pivot around which the whole of creation, time and space, revolves. This is a creative way of asserting the importance and centrality of Jesus in space and time. This is the Son: listen to him! The Transfiguration, then, is a declaration and a celebration of who Jesus is. And, in our Lenten context, we should probably take note that Luke emphasises that this revelation, declaration and celebration took place in the context of prayer. The Conclusion Perhaps what is most interesting of all is how the story ends. Luke tells us that Peter, James and John "fell silent, and did not tell anybody what they had seen". In Mark's account, Jesus tells the apostles to say nothing, but in Luke's version silence is a choice they make for themselves. Not only do they say nothing to anyone afterwards, but they are silent even on the mountain. They do not talk to Jesus about what they have seen, or ask him questions.. Silence and awe — this is perhaps the only appropriate reaction to such a revelation. It comes back to Luke's emphasis on prayer. Just as the Transfiguration occurs in the context of Jesus's prayers, so the apostles will need time and space to come to terms with what has been revealed to them. And we too need to engage in prayer and reflection if we are to know who Jesus is, and where we are going with him.  Photo Credits:
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Peregrinus
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