February 14th, 2021
2 Kings 2:1–12, Psalm 50:1–6, 2 Corinthians 4:3–6, Mark 9:2–9
Today is Transfiguration Sunday, the day in the church calendar where we celebrate, remember, and marvel at the transfiguration that was witnessed by Peter, James, and John. For those less familiar with the liturgical calendar (and until recently I’d count myself among those), the liturgical year begins with Advent, moving into Christmas, followed by Epiphany, and Epiphany culminates in Transfiguration Sunday before Ash Wednesday kicks off the season of Lent looking towards Easter.
Epiphany, as the word suggests, is a season where we look into the person of Jesus, that the mystery of who he is might be revealed to us anew. Transfiguration, then, provides a perfect end as it was surely the greatest epiphany to those close disciples prior to the resurrection. This event in the gospels also is one of the last events before Jesus turns towards Jerusalem in earnest, and so it is also fitting as the last Sunday before we as a church turn towards Easter beginning this Wednesday in Lent.
I didn’t grow up with any sort of following the church calendar. I grew up knowing of Christmas and Easter, and sometimes Advent, which to me was just trying to stretch out Christmas as much as possible. But I have come to really find important meaning in the rhythm of the liturgical year. Part of the meaning is that I know on this Transfiguration Sunday, there are perhaps a billion or more Christians who are specifically thinking upon this story. What an incredible sign of unity in the body of Christ that so many can be of one mind in this way. If you long for church unity, the lectionary is a good way to have a sense of what the global church may be thinking about.
On a more individual note, I love that as I follow the liturgical year, my year and life is structured around the life of Jesus, so that I am reminded more of God throughout my every day life. Just as winter is for many a reminder of Jesus’ birth, and spring brings to mind Easter and the resurrection, so too can the late winter and early spring times in between be a reminder of Jesus’ life in between birth and resurrection. And summer and fall a reminder of the work of the Holy Spirit through the early church, reflecting again on Jesus’ teachings to do them and call to go and make disciples.
So what’s the importance of Transfiguration Sunday?
To keep it short, when Jesus goes up on this mountain there are two major stories that should come to mind. Moses and Elijah both going up mountains and encountering the glory of God. When Jesus goes up with his close disciples we may expect an external revelation of God’s glory.
Instead what happens is Jesus himself is transfigured before them, showing that the glory of God is not external to Jesus, though certainly outside of the disciples, it is found within the very incarnate human Jesus who is the only son of the Father. We have both unity and distinction in this story, laying the groundwork for the mystery of the Trinity, which the early church has given us language for.
Jesus is the very image of the Father the exact radiance of his glory, Jesus is God, the Father is God, the Holy Spirit is God, but also each is distinct from each in some way. And there is no “resolving” or “simplifying” this mystery that it might make sense to us.c
