First Reading – Genesis 12: 1 – 4;
Second Reading – 2 Timothy 1: 8 – 10;
Gospel – Matthew 17: 1 – 9
Today’s readings speak of our call to holiness, of true greatness, of faith and trust in God and the ultimate glory that awaits us. We encounter a God who speaks to us and we are called upon to listen to him and respond to him. Now as we enter the Second Week of Lent, our task is to continue to examine our hearts and to repent in order to prepare ourselves for the glorious paschal mystery. As human beings we do not like change. We do not like change and we resist it as much as we can. But as much as we resist, change is a part of our life. We grow from infant to child to adult. We move from one place to another in search of new things and new way of living. We know that we are pilgrims on a journey to a more permanent dwelling place, a place of total union with our God of Truth and Love.
The Gospel of today speaks of striking interventions by God in people’s lives indicated through the transfiguration of Jesus on the Mountain. Jesus is transfigured in the presence of his disciples, manifesting to them his divinity to strengthen them in their faith before he enters into his Passion and death on the cross.
Today’s First Reading from the Book of Genesis involves the Divine calling of Abraham to become the spiritual father of the people of God. The appearance of Abraham in history marked a new era. The Lord called Abram to take his relatives and to depart from his country and his Father’s house to the land that the Lord would show. He was asked to sacrifice all familiar places and the people he knew and move to a new place shown by God himself. His trust in God will lead to his blessings. Abram did not take the initiative to communicate with God or to seek His blessings. Rather, it was Yahweh who made the first move. But God makes his own demands of Abram. First, he was required to completely disassociate himself from his pagan past. Secondly, he was required to migrate to a land of God’s choice. God makes a promise to Abram, that of him, He would make a great nation, that He would bless him and make great his name so that Abram would be a blessing to many. God now builds a new relationship with him. Today’s Second Reading from the Second Letter of Timothy is a reminder that God calls each person and he has not stopped communicating to people. God wants everyone to be holy, reminding that all believers have received their life and immortality through the Gospel. Therefore, a special call is given to join in the suffering for the gospel. For the good news can entail hardships. In the midst of sufferings, a person is called to rely on the power of God. Paul indicates that God offers us salvation and sanctification as a pure gift and not as the result of our works.
The Gospel of today gives us the beautiful story of Transfiguration. Matthew tells us that Jesus took with him his three beloved disciples Peter, James and John to a high Mountain, apart and in their presence he was transfigured. When he was transfigured before them, his face shone like the Sun and his garments became white as snow. Moses the greatest law giver and Elijah the greatest prophet of Israel come to the side of Jesus and talk to him about his passion and death. For Jesus this was a special moment.. This was the important moment when he had to strengthen his disciples particularly the ones who had been chosen to be close to him during his ministry. Jesus wanted his sonship to be revealed to them with the voice of the Father telling them that Jesus is his Beloved Son in whom he is well pleased and they ought to listen to him. Secondly, when his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white, the event may have testified to the fact that Jesus was the true Light which enlightens everyone. Thirdly, the transfiguration foreshadowed the eternal reign of Jesus as God and King in Heaven. The Father tells the disciples to listen to Jesus. True listening requires a response from the listener, attending to what was said, recognising its meaning, and making it part of the person’s inner, conscious experience. God speaks to us in so many ways. First of all we need to learn to listen to what life is saying in the present moment before trying to shape our prayer. Too often we make the world just a projection of our own desires and fears. Second, when life gives us its message, we should make the understanding of that message the first object of our prayer. Third, once we have received the message of life we must attempt to integrate it with our efforts to live by the Gospel. The Gospel must be the focal point of our lives. Finally, we need to pray and listen to what God says and yet we know God has no need of our prayer, in fact the very desire to pray be a gift from God. Suddenly there is a change at the end of this episode. They hear the gentle voice of Jesus who tells them to rise and not to be afraid. They look up and see Jesus standing there alone. They would have been surprised that the Father is gone, Moses and Elijah are gone. From now on they will see only Jesus but, after this experience, they know that he is not alone, that he has the full backing of his Father and of the Jewish tradition of the Law and the Prophets. They were learning the lesson that, though Jesus the Messiah would be rejected, suffer and die at the hands of his own people and their enemies, glory and victory would follow. Being on the mountain was a wonderful experience but the real place is on earth with the people of God. Thus once the supernatural event is over, Jesus and his disciples go down the mountain. There Jesus orders them not to tell anyone about the vision till he is raised from the dead.