Saint Maria Bertilla Boscardin
Faith that leads to God Glory
It is easy to see why faith is the main theme of the first reading, though it is more difficult to discover this theme in the gospel. Abraham needed faith to follow the road God showed him, and so too does the Christians; to follow Christ. It is this faith that will lead us to God's Glory, to experience the beatific vision and reach the transfiguration experience. Jesus mission here on earth was to show us the way how we attain this beatific vision; if we have faith in him, we will surely enjoy with him in heaven. St Paul in the second reading teaches us that it is Christ Jesus who died, was raised and who also is at the right hand of God interceding for us. He is interceding for us so that one day, all of us may be like him and enjoy the eternal happiness God has prepared for us in the beatific vision experience. Faith is a great tool for this.
Every year the Gospel reading for the Second Sunday of Lent recounts Jesus’ Transfiguration, and someone called this particular Sunday the “Sunday of the three mountains.” We have Abraham on Mount Moriah, the Redeemer Christ on Cross which transforms us on Mount Calvary, and the Transfigured Christ on Mount Tabor. We are invited to climb these mountains during Lent. Mountain climbing is hard but when we reach the top, we see things in a different way. The air is cleaner, the light is clearer, we come closer to God, and are changed by the effort. Mount Moriah calls us to serve the true God alone. Mount Calvary shows us Jesus Christ, the way, the truth and the life, and His saving death and Resurrection. Mount Tabor calls us to trust in the glory that awaits us. You may climb any one of these to discover that you have come closer to God and are changed deeply. During this lent we shall climb these mountains only through our deep and meaningful prayers where God will reveal his glory in the silence of our hearts.
There are many things that can blind us or keep us from recognizing God's glory and presence in our lives, for instance, sin and unbelief, pride, easy life and worldly pleasures. However, with faith we can overcome these and see God's Glory in our lives and make it to be seen to others too. Faith enables us to see what is hidden or unseen to the naked eye. Through the eyes of faith Abraham recognized God and God's call on his life. He saw from afar not only what God intended for him, but for his descendants as well - an everlasting covenant of friendship and peace with the living God. Abraham is the father of faith because he put his hope in the promises of God. To us too, faith makes us taste in advance the light of God's glory when we shall see him face to face (1 Corinthians 13:12; 1 John 3:2).
The transfiguration experience happens after Jesus' prediction of his death, to prepare his apostles to face his suffering, it's one of the experiences the father is revealing his son to us. Jesus gave these Apostles this very brief experience of His glory and also to us today because they would need that taste of His goodness for the road ahead. They would need to forever remember what their final destiny was. They would need to hold this experience close as they endured the many crosses and sufferings ahead. And they would use this experience to remind themselves that whatever they had to endure on the journey up the mountain of life is worth it. Because on the summit is a glory so great that no hardship, they would have to endure would ever prove to be too big.
The three Apostles saw his face shining as the sun and clothes shining as white, meaning in him there is no sin. The church gives us this gospel today in this journey of Lent to assess ourselves in our call as Christians, what needs to be purified, where have we gone wrong, to examine our sins most clearly with the light of Jesus, and then re-journey in the way of perfection. Therefore, transfiguration shows the glory we will have when we repent and how we shall savour the Lord's goodness even up to forgetting ourselves. Peter forgot that they too (three apostles) were to build their tent too but focused on Moses, Elijah and Jesus. We only focus on the Lord's goodness, and this is the final grace of our Christian calling, of our call to holiness of life: to experience the beatific vision, that is, seeing him face to face, the son of God, the Lord of all.
Let us Pray.
My transfigured Lord, You shone in radiance before the eyes of Your Apostles so that they could testify to the beauty of the life to which we are all called. During this Lent, help me to face my sin with courage and confidence in You and in Your power to not only forgive but to also transform. My I die to sin more deeply than ever before so as to share more fully in the glory of Your divine life. Amen
Blessed Sunday
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