As we continue our Lenten journey, we hear stories of two significant journeys in the history of our faith. Abraham travels to a distant land with his precious son, Isaac, where his devotion and obedience to God will be put to their greatest test. Jesus leads his closest disciples up a mountain where he will be transfigured in glory. May our practice of the Lenten disciplines of fasting, prayer, and almsgiving transform us into more loving and devoted disciples.
Only Abraham’s tremendous trust in God’s plan made him willing to sacrifice his own son. It couldn’t possibly have made any sense. He must have asked himself how he could have descendants as numerous as the stars if his only son is dead. But he trusted in God and God transfigured an occasion of human sacrifice to one of animal sacrifice. May we have such trust in God that we, too, respond, “Here I am” when we hear His voice, allowing our lives to be transfigured.
Today Jesus takes Peter, James, and John up a mountain to see him transfigured in glory and hear his Father’s voice in affirmation. Much later, he will take them to the garden of Gethsemane. There he will be transfigured as he pleads with his Father to spare him. On that occasion his closest friends will fall asleep, causing them to miss Jesus’ final hours before he is arrested. What they couldn’t have known then but what we know now is that Jesus will give all the disciples the opportunity to see him in his true glory, his risen glory, after his resurrection. This is how we all know his glory now. As we gather for the weekly Eucharist, with Peter we too proclaim, “Rabbi, it is good that we are here!”
Love, Peace, Joy,
Fr. Bob
Comments
There are no comments yet - be the first one to comment: