New Ways of Knowing
“Transformers! More than meets the eye!”
Do you remember that jingle? Transformers were an action-figure toy that was big when I was a kid. I didn’t play with the toys but I sure remember that catchy catch-phrase.
And when I think of The Transfiguration the ditty pops right into my head. I know there is a difference. Transform: make a thorough or dramatic change, in appearance, form or character. Transfigure: transform into something more beautiful; a new and typically exalted or spiritual appearance (merriam-webster.com).
Jesus takes those disciples up onto that high mountain for a special purpose. The place is significant. The event is significant. What happened six days before is significant too.
First, the religious authorities demanded a sign. They wanted to see more than meets the eye. If you are the Son of God, then prove it. And as you well know, my preaching friend, next Sunday as we enter into Lent, Jesus will be asked the same. If you are God, prove it. At times, all of us want a superhero with superpower, Jesus.
After the Pharisees demanded their sign, Peter made a claim. He confessed that Jesus indeed was the Messiah, the Son of the living God. Peter could say it. But was not ready to trust what it would mean. When Jesus shared his messianic expectations of suffering, death and resurrection that was more than Peter could stand (Matt 16)
How often do we say something (I love you, I do, I accept, I will, I get it, etc.) but the reality of the words have not yet transformed our being? In my imaginings, Jesus the teacher gave some prayerful thought to what it would take to get Peter and the disciples to the next level. Why not? The Son of God was fully human, he wasn’t reading a script. There is gracious compassion in his taking them apart, to a sacred place. In his kinder tone as he reaches down to touch them, encouraging them to get up. Six days before, Jesus sounds pretty angry. Something has changed.
The transfiguration was an awe-inspiring gift that changed Peter’s reality. Experiential learning transforms what we know in a way that intellectual assent cannot.
What transfiguring moments have transformed your reality? What words did you utter before an event, that afterwards took on a whole new meaning. Holding my brand new infant daughter changed my reality. Standing around a hospital bed with a family as someone made the journey from this life to the next changed my reality. A child explaining the drawing they made for me in chapel changes my reality. Sometimes, as simple as it is, just watching people and reflecting on the beauty of it all, invites trust in an Ultimate Reality that is always available. Yet, I often ignore.
In addition to an action-figure commercial, this passage also reminds me of the infamous moment Thomas Merton had on the corner of 4th and Walnut,
In Louisville, at the corner of Fourth and Walnut, in the center of the shopping district, I was suddenly overwhelmed with the realization that I loved all those people, that they were mine and I theirs, that we could not be alien to one another even though we were total strangers …There is no way of telling people that they are all walking around shining like the sun.
Yes, Jesus’ transfiguration is to show forth God’s glory. To share with his disciples a way of taking in the truth already confessed. Of course, Peter wants to create a dwelling place, and mark this site as holy. When we are transformed we want to hold onto the moment, that awareness, that connective understanding. Jesus says, take that newfound awareness, take that transformed heart into the world. The dwelling is not a place. The dwelling is within you to carry where ever you go.
We will need to remember the radiant light when we live through the transformative times in the desert. We will need to recall God’s beloved encouragement to keep listening. When we leave our mountaintop moments we take with us renewed knowledge that yes, indeed, there is always more than meets the eye.
