Transfiguration Sermon

Today’s lectionary discussed the Transfiguration of Christ. I want to bring out certain aspects of the text that would have been important for a Jewish listener and see what can be adapted for us, even though we no longer live in that time and space.

In the story, Jesus is accompanied by Peter, James, and John and goes on top of the mountain. Jesus led them up to a high mountain, apart by themselves, and then he was transfigured before them. His clothes shone, more white than snow, and Elijah and Moses appeared with Jesus. Peter spoke, saying “Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make 3 tabernacles, one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah…” After the voice came out from the cloud, only Jesus was left with them.

To a Jewish audience, Jesus being flanked by Moses and Elijah was extremely important. Moses, for the Jews, represented the Law since he received the Law from God. Now, the Law for the Jews was not just a list of commands. Rather, the Law emphasized the Jewish covenant with YHWH, and because of God’s gratuitous election, the Jews were God’s chosen people and they incurred certain obligations. For instance, they were to not eat pork, to circumcise their children, to have Levite priesthood, etc. These obligations were understood as setting them apart from other nations and peoples surrounding them. Moreover, the Law embodied many of their ethical and moral principles. Children were not to talk back to their parents; women were supposed to obey their husbands; girl teenagers were often “given” in marriage to young men at the ages around 12-14. The patriarchal society was grounded, in many respects, by the Law of Moses. The Law thus not only expressed the Jewish society, but it also validated its form. The Law was inextricably tied to the culture, and the Jewish culture was extremely important to the Jews.

But Jesus was also flanked by Elijah. Elijah signified the prophets. Now, what role did the prophets play in Jewish culture? Well, there are numerous examples of prophets in the Hebrew Scriptures. I would argue that some of them became judges. Most of them were raised up by God for a time, to announce a particular message (oscillating between hope and despair, though a few had only negative pronouncements). Many of them decried the general lack of justice, and the written prophets we have (Amos, Isaiah, Hosea, Jeremiah, etc.) were written during periods of exile. Foreign invaders had entered Israel, conquered the cities and the surrounding villages. They would kill many people, pillage the villages and the cities, wreck havoc upon the sacred shrines and holy places, and in the important case of Babylon, take away many of the most talented individuals. Desperate times called for desperate measures, and I don’t want to just dismiss the acts of injustice lightly. Many times it’s easy to condemn others when we don’t understand the situation that they find themselves in, but, nonetheless, many (if not all) prophets lamented the many injustices that were taking place, specifically against the most vulnerable. The prophets represented the prophetic call against injustice.

So what might we take away from the Transfiguration story? I would like to offer three main lessons.

First, Jesus, in being represented by Moses and Elijah, showed his grounding in the Jewish history, narrative, culture, and identity. Jesus was a Jew, and he showed his groundedness in the Transfiguration. He aligned himself with the Mosaic law as well as the Hebrew prophets. What grounds us today? What unites us with others across time and space? Is it our ancestors? Is it the Christian faith? Is it the Christian rituals, such as the Eucharist or Baptism, which Christians have literally done for thousands of years? Whatever we might value as part of our heritage, our past, our forefathers and foremothers, I believe that it is important that we have a grounding. Jesus, after all, did.

Secondly, Jesus in being represented by Moses and Elijah, but particularly Elijah, displays his regard for justice. The Mosaic Law was important in setting the Jewish people apart because of God’s covenant with them, but it was also designed to prosper them. I see many similarities with the Islamic Sharia law, which is law that is oriented toward producing justice. The Mosaic law was intended to produce justice, though justice was not separable from God’s covenant with them. Similarly, the prophets represented the prophetic call against injustice. They represented God’s favor and concern for the oppressed – today, we might understand them as the felons, the poor, the homeless, the undernourished, the GLBTQ community, immigrants, etc. How can we concern ourselves with the poor and the oppressed, as God would have us do? What are ways that we already do this? If God, or our ancestors, or Christians in previous times, or whatever community that we feel grounded in, came to us and asked us “What have you done with your one, precious life?”, what would we say? Would we be ashamed, or would we be proud? What are ways that we can proudly respond, and what are ways that we can improve? A Jewish saying from Rabbi Zusya goes like this: “In the world to come, I shall not be asked, "Why were you not Moses?" I shall be asked, "Why were you not Zusya?"

One of the wonders of God’s sovereignty is that God doesn’t need us. God does not need you. The Christian story says that God created us apart from any necessity. God, in God’s perfect freedom and love, created all things, redeemed all things, and will eventually glorify all things. God’s plan was focused in Christ, but since all things are in Christ, God’s plan of redemption is not just for all Christians, or all humans, but for the entire cosmos. God does not need us, and we are set free from trying to make the world perfect. I submit that even if we could make the world as we saw fit, according to the ways in which we measure perfection, the world would still be tremendously messed up. God does not need us, but God invites us to participate in the ultimate plan of glory. In what ways can we participate in the work of God in the world?

Thirdly, I would urge us to consider the other person whose face shone like Jesus’ did in the Transfiguration account. Moses, after seeing God on Mount Sinai (in Exodus 34:29-33), came down from the mountain, but he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the LORD. When Aaron and the Israelites saw Moses, his face was radiant, and they were afraid to come to him, but Moses called to them and so they came closer to speak with him. When Moses finished speaking, he put a veil over his face, but whenever he entered the LORD’s presence to speak with God, he removed the veil until he came out. In both cases, the radiance came from speaking with God. In what ways do we find radiance in others? Radiance, at least in my mind, brings images of light, of warmth, of comfort, of passion. In what activities, in which people, in what times of the day or images in our mind do these feelings come over us? How can we, as individuals and as a community, find greater radiance in our lives? What activities do you perform, or what people do you fellowship with, in which these feelings of warmth, comfort, passion, and light enter? Whatever they may be, pursue those. Seek to bring greater radiance into your life, your work, your relationships, your activities. Great people have encountered a glorifying radiance from God’s presence – let us leave this place and pursue greater radiance in our own lives.

I believe that if we pursue radiance in our lives, we will find that it is linked with our grounding in something bigger than ourselves (i.e. our talk about Moses and the grounding of Christ within the Jewish culture and tradition) and with our justice work (i.e. our discussion of the prophets and our participation with God in the kingdom of God).