The Fourth Luminous Mystery: The Transfiguration of Jesus

28About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. 29As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. 30Two men, Moses and Elijah, 31appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem. 32Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. 33As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, "Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." (He did not know what he was saying.)



34While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. 35A voice came from the cloud, saying, "This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him." 36When the voice had spoken, they found that Jesus was alone. The disciples kept this to themselves, and told no one at that time what they had seen. (Luke 9:28-36)

Today we hear in the Gospel of Luke his depiction of the Transfiguration of Jesus, Our Lord. The Transfiguration is the fourth Luminous Mystery, or Mystery of Light (See also the Miracle at the Wedding in Cana, The Baptism of Jesus, and the Proclamation of the Kingdom of God). Explaining the Transfiguration, Pope John Paul II wrote, "The mystery of light par excellence is the Transfiguration, traditionally believed to have taken place on Mount Tabor. The glory of the Godhead shines forth from the face of Christ as the Father commands the astonished Apostles to 'listen to him' (cf. Luke 9:35 and parallels) and to prepare to experience with him the agony of the Passion, so as to come with him to the joy of the Resurrection and a life transfigured by the Holy Spirit.”

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, during the Fourth Luminous Mystery, “For a moment, Jesus discloses His divine glory, confirming Peter's confession. He also reveals that He will have to go by the way of the cross at Jerusalem in order to 'enter into His glory'. (Luke 24:26)" As Luke recounts, God the Father commanded, "Listen to him." The disciple John, called the beloved disciple for his faithfulness to Jesus, was the only disciple who did not abandon Jesus on His way to the Cross at Calvary. As we consider this fact, it is interesting to not that he was only able to accomplish this faithfulness while holding the arm of Mary, the Mother of God. In thinking of John, we realize that we can suffer tremendous pain in this life with bravery, by embracing our Holy Mother and praying her Rosary.

The word "transfigured" is an interesting word. It is defined as “to transform, literally or figuratively to metamorphose, or to change.” It means to change into another form. But it also means to change the outside to match the inside. In the case of Jesus Christ, the Transfiguration provides a glimpse of the glory of heaven, here in the reality of earth. The glory of God incarnate is revealed, and we literally see the majesty of heaven shining forth like a brilliant sun. In that moment, the light of Christ overcomes that of Moses and Elijah—two figured highly revered by the Jews. We can imagine from Peter’s response that he was ecstatic. His master had reached the same level as Moses and Elijah. Despite only days before having proclaimed Jesus the “Christ of God,” Peter equates Him to Moses and Elijah, and in doing so loses sight of his true Godliness. Rather than place Jesus in the Holy Trinity with God the Father and the Holy Spirit, Peter suggests that tents be erected, in homage to a more earthly trinity present in the minds’ of the Jews. He is quickly corrected by the proclamation from Our Father in Heaven: “This is my Son, who I have chosen. Listen to Him.” The cloud overtakes Moses and Elijah, and only Jesus remains, reminding us that while Moses represents the law of the Old Testament and Elias represents the prophets, Jesus is the consummation of the Old Testament. He is the new Law and the fulfillment of all the prophets.

St. Cyril of Alexandria wrote of the Transfiguration in terms of the connection between suffering and glory, between the Law and the Prophets, between the foreshadowing of the Old Testament and the prophesies fulfilled in the Jesus. He wrote in 444: "I say to you, there are some of those standing here who shall not taste of death until they have seen the kingdom of God." ... By the "kingdom of God" He means the sight of the glory in which He will appear at His revelation to the inhabitants of earth. He will come in the glory of God the Father and not in a humble condition like ours. How did He make those who received the promise spectators of a thing so wonderful? He goes up into the mountain taking three chosen disciples with Him. He is transformed to such a surpassing and godlike brightness that His garments even glittered with rays of fire and seemed to flash like lightning. Besides, Moses and Elijah stood at Jesus’ side and spoke with one another about His departure that He was about, it says, to accomplish at Jerusalem. This meant the mystery of the dispensation in the flesh and of His precious suffering upon the Cross. It is also true that the law of Moses and the word of the holy prophets foreshadowed the mystery of Christ. The law of Moses foreshadowed it by types and shadows, painting it as in a picture. The holy prophets in different ways declared beforehand that in due time He would appear in our likeness and for the salvation and life of us all, agree to suffer death on the tree. Moses and Elijah standing before Him and talking with one another was a sort of representation. It excellently displayed our Lord Jesus Christ as having the law and the prophets for His bodyguard. It displayed Christ as being the Lord of the Law and the Prophets, as foretold in them by those things that they proclaimed in mutual agreement beforehand. The words of the prophets are not different from the teachings of the law.”

For Jesus, we can only imagine what He prayed about on the mountain prior to the Transfiguration. Given the pain and Passion that lied in store for Him, we can guess that He was contemplating His earthly sacrifice and death. The Transfiguration was a message from above, preparing the disciples for the pain and suffering that was growing near. As Jesus descends from the mountain, He sets His sights firmly and resolutely on Jerusalem, on His death, on our redemption.

The Transfiguration makes us stop and think for a moment. Jesus revealed His sanctity to the disciples present, and then walked graciously to His death for us. But what of our own transfiguration? How has the sacrifice of Jesus changed us? We only need look to the Eucharist for our answer. For us, we are able to experience moments of profound Transfiguration in the Eucharist, when we receive Holy Communion. This experience of the Eucharist is more than a symbol, it is the physical manifestation of the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Christ. It is for us, according to Saint Thomas Aquinas, “a pledge of future glory, containing in Itself all delight.” The celebration of the Eucharist is our transfiguration on earth to allowing us to endure the agony of our daily passion in preparation for the glorious joy of our Resurrection!

Dear Jesus,
Thou didst appear to Thy three disciples in all Thy glory.


I know that Thou art now in Heaven seated at the right hand of the Father in the same glorious state Thou revealed Thyself in on Mount Tabor.

I am truly thankful that Thou hast suffered, died and risen so as to conquer death so that I may be saved from the it's power.

I know that I will one day be risen with a glorified body when Thou come to judge the living and the dead.

I am sorry for the many times that I have offended Thee by not striving for holiness and by being lazy in my prayer life.

Please send me the graces I need to truly desire holiness and to make the sacrifices necessary to achieve it so that I may live my life always mindful that one day I will stand before Thee and be held accountable for all my action and lack thereof.

Amen.
 
Day 59 of 365
Prayer Intentions: True transformation of our sinful lives into lives of Christ!
Requested Intentions: For the reconciliation of estranged spouses (A); Safety of travelers (J); Improved family relationship with the Lord, using gifts for His glory (L); For the orphans of Saint Francis Xavier in India (Fr. B); For the health of a family member with Rett’s Disorder (C); For a restorative, faith-deepening Lent for all those who are struggling (L).
Special Intentions (Day 18 of 45-day Novena to Our Blessed Lady of Lourdes): The intentions of all those who read this blog, whether submitted or retained in the quiet of their hearts; Penance, Penance, Penance for sinners; For all those who are suffering.