Three little words.
It’s the Second Sunday of
Lent, and a lot happens in today’s Scripture Readings. Big events.
I would suggest, however, that the most important lesson we can learn
from these readings, comes not from the big events, but from three little
words. Let’s look back on these readings
and see what we can find.
In the first reading, we are
presented with God’s covenant with Abram.
Abram has made his choice. He
will follow the will of the Invisible God.
He has been told to gather his family and his belongings, and leave the
place of his birth. He doesn’t know
where he is going, but he believes God’s promise that he will show him the
way.
“I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you.
I will make your name great, so that you will be a
blessing.”
This is God’s great covenant
with Abram. It sets in motion all that
follows in Genesis, the travels of Abram, soon to be renamed Abraham, and
Sarah. They will follow God where He
leads them. They hear God’s great
promise, to make of them a great nation, and they believe Him.
“Abram went as the Lord directed him.”
Abram, through his actions,
answers God in the manner of our response to the Psalm:
“Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in
you.”
Similarly, St. Paul, in our
second reading, urges Timothy to accept and follow the Lord in faith:
“He saved us and called us to a holy life, not according to
our works, but according to his own
design…”
So far, we’ve seen Abram show
his faith in God by leaving his homeland, and following the Lord to an unknown
destination, we’ve been admonished to put our trust in the Lord, and we’ve been
called to live a holy life. All of these
lead us now to today’s Gospel reading from Matthew.
Jesus has gathered Peter,
James, and John, and taken them away to a mountain top. When they get there, Jesus is transfigured,
he shines with a great radiance, and his clothes become as white as light. Then, suddenly, Moses and Elijah, appear with
Jesus, and are talking with him before the apostles. Moses, the law-giver, and
Elijah, the great prophet. Appearing
before them in this manner, the three apostles see the Divinity of Jesus
revealed. They are mesmerized by the
experience, until a bright cloud comes and casts a shadow over them, and God
speaks directly to them. They hear the
voice, and are frightened, they fell prostrate on the ground, until Jesus
touches them, and tells them to rise.
They get up, go down the mountain, and Jesus commands them not to speak
of the vision to anyone until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.
Pretty astounding! I’m sure we all think to ourselves, how would
we react if we were to witness this?
What’s the meaning behind it, what can we take away from the experience? I suggest, once again, that the most
important message that we can take away from these readings, can be summed up
in three little words. Spoken to the
apostles, by God himself,
“Listen to him.”
Where can we experience a
transfiguration? Where can we see the
Glory of the Lord revealed? Eucharistic
Adoration! What greater Mystery, what
greater experience, can we hope for, short of dying and beholding the Beatific
Vision? Worshiping our Lord in Eucharistic
Adoration? Spend time before the Lord, spend time with the Lord, listen to
him!” We can also experience a great
transfiguration by virtue of our participation of the Holy Eucharist. In the Great Sacrament of the Altar, we are
taken out of our earthy, mortal life and transfigured into the Heavenly realm,
into the presence of Mary and all the saints.
Certainly, it would be great if God would speak to us directly, from a
bright cloud, but it isn’t likely. We can, however, spend time with the Lord,
in quiet, listening. We can petition the
Lord with the assurance that our prayers will be heard. We can prostrate
ourselves before the Lord, and follow the command that we have been given by
God himself,
“Listen to him.”
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