CvK
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The
Transfiguration Jesus
took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high
mountain where they could be alone. There us their presence he was
transfigured: his face shone like the sun and his clothes became as white as
the light. Suddenly Moses and Elijah appeared to them; they were talking with
him. Then Peter spoke to Jesus. 'Lord', he said 'it is wonderful for us to be
here; if you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you, one for Moses
and one for Elijah'. He was still speaking when suddenly a bright cloud
covered them with shadow, and from the cloud there came a voice which said,
'This is my Son; the Beloved; he enjoys my favour. Listen to him.' When they
heard this, the disciples fell on their faces, overcome with fear. But Jesus
came up and touched them. 'Stand up' he said, 'do not be afraid.' And when
they raised their eyes they saw no one but only Jesus. Matthew 17:1-9 The painting of The Transfiguration of Christ by
Christopher von Keisenberg illustrates one of the most extraordinary moments
in the gospels when two previous covenants with God meet their resolution in
Christ. Christ is upon the mountain (traditionally Mt Tabor) and he
radiates and is suffused with light. He has led his apostles Peter, James and
John "into an high mountain apart". Peter,
as the future head of the Church, leads us in the viewing of this scene.
Peter is also to write of this event later (Second Letter of St Peter, It is also the mountain of prefiguration.
Here is Christ flanked by the prophets of the Old Testament. Moses clothed in
the traditional green of hope. Elijah's head and shoulders are covered by the
tallith or the Jewish prayer shawl. Both of
Moses and Elijah had to deal with altars to false gods: Moses with the altar
of the Golden Calf raised by his people at the foot
of There also appears a bright cloud of God that brings
transfiguration to the apostles, a transfiguration we can all share in by
following Christ. It is the mantle of light like the mantle Elijah passed
along to Elisha. Indeed it prefigures Pentecost. The words they hear from
this bright cloud again repeat the refrain of Jesus' baptism, where it was
said that the spirit appeared like a bird. Here we have the fulfilment of the
other covenants. The first of these covenants comes to Moses who climbs Mt
Sinai and is confronted by the burning bush, told to remove his sandals and given
the law. This is the first step on the long road to an ever more refined and
spiritual relationship with God. The second covenant came to Elijah on the
nearby Christ steps towards us with
arms outstretched. He is the unblemished sacrifice on an altar in the desert
replacing all other sacrifices to God. Here we can see him truly as the
bearer of light. His outstretched arms prefigure the crucifixion and at the
same time the resurrection as well as including us all in this moment. At
this moment He is in a sense outside time and it is described this way in the
gospels. Christ is the pivotal point and for a moment brings all to himself
across the barriers of time and space. |
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