Moses and Elijah

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(Usus Antiquior) Second Sunday of Lent (I Classis) – Sunday, 29 February 2015 : Holy Gospel

Liturgical Colour : Violet

Sequentia Sancti Evangelii secundum Matthaeum – Continuation of the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew

Matthew 17 : 1-9

In illo tempore : Assumpsit Jesus Petrum, et Jacobum, et Joannem fratrem eius, et duxit illos in montem excelsum seorsum : et transfiguratus est ante eos. Et resplenduit facies ejus sicut sol : vestimenta autem ejus facta sunt alba sicut nix. Et ecce, apparuerunt illis Moyses et Elias cum eo loquentes.

Respondens autem Petrus, dixit ad Jesum : Domine, bonum est nos hic esse : si vis, faciamus hic tria tabernacula, Tibi unum, Moysi unum et Eliae unum. Adhuc eo loquente, ecce, nubes lucida obumbravit eos. Et ecce vox de nube, dicens : Hic est Filius Meus dilectus, in quo mihi bene complacui : ipsum audite.

Et audientes discipuli, ceciderunt in faciem suam, et timuerunt valde. Et accesit Jesus, et tetigit eos, dixitque eis : Surgite, et nolite timere. Levantes autem oculos suos, neminem viderunt nisi solum Jesum. Et descendentibus illis de monte, praecepit eis Jesus, dicens : Nemini dixeritis visionem, donec Filius Hominis a mortuis resurgat.

English translation

At that time, Jesus took Peter and James, and John his brother, and brought them up into a high mountain apart, and He was transfigured before them. And His face did shine as the sun, and His garments became white as snow. And behold there appeared to them Moses and Elijah talking with Him.

And Peter answering, said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If You will, let us make here three tabernacles (or tents), one for You, and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” And as he was yet speaking, behold a bright cloud overshadowed them, and lo, a voice out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him, all of you.”

And the disciples hearing, fell upon their face and were very much afraid. And Jesus came and touched them, and said to them, “Arise and do not fear.” And they lifted up their eyes to see no one, but only Jesus. And as they came down from the mountain. Jesus charged them, saying, “Tell the vision to no man, till the Son of Man has risen from the dead.”

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Wednesday, 6 August 2014 : Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate a significant and very important feast day in our Church, that is the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord. Today we celebrate the occasion when Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour was glorified on Mount Tabor, when He revealed His glory and the true nature of divinity to His disciples, the one and only time He did so before His death and resurrection.

To the disciples who witnessed it, Peter, James and John, this was truly a moment of brief showcase and foretaste of the glory of God that is to come through Jesus Christ. Yet at that time, they have yet to be able to understand what it means by the Transfiguration, and the significance of the events and the actions which Jesus took with the two great prophets of God.

The two prophets and leaders of God’s people, Moses and Elijah are the preeminent ones among many others, in that they were the chief amongst all others whom God had sent into the world in their respective missions. To Moses, whom God had appointed as the leader and guide for His people Israel, He had imparted the very Laws that He had established with mankind, the Ten Commandments and the accompanying laws and statutes as encoded in the Law of Moses.

Thus, Moses represented the Law, which God had given to mankind to guide them and govern them in their attitudes and behaviour, that they may conform more closely to the way of the Lord. Meanwhile, the prophet Elijah, whom God appointed to prophesy to the people of the northern kingdom of Israel was the greatest among the prophets, and representing the prophesies of God, which promised the people the coming of the salvation in the Messiah.

And why did both of them appear to Jesus at the Mount Tabor on the Transfiguration? That is because Jesus is the perfect fulfillment and completion of the Law and the prophecies of the prophets. He was the fulfillment of all that God had revealed to men as well as all the things unrevealed and hidden from men, perfecting and unveiling the true full meaning of the Law, and the fulfillment of the long awaited prophecies by the prophets of old.

Therefore, the two great servants of God made their appearance in what is likely to be a very significant and symbolic meaning in the history of God’s plan for the salvation of mankind, but it is most likely that they also came to give strength and support for Jesus as He embarked on the final part of His mission on this world, that is towards His suffering and death on the cross in Jerusalem, the Holy city of God.

They were there to affirm Jesus in His mission, to encourage Him and give Him support, as surely all of heaven, all the angels and the holy men and women who had departed the world at the time were all in full awareness of the supreme importance of this singular mission that Jesus Christ was about to undertake for the sake of salvation of all mankind.

Yet, indeed, the Feast of the Transfiguration also reminds all of us of an important fact, that life is not all happy and good, and neither will it be all smooth and easy. And we are bound to have to face up to the challenges in life and the difficulties that are to be part of our lives. We are like the disciples on that mountain. When Peter said to Jesus, for them to build three tents for Himself and the two great servants of God, it showed reluctance to leave all things that are good.

But God made it plain to the disciples, and showing in His majesty, He made them listen to the will of His Son, who told them to come down with Him from the mountain where He showed His glory and majesty. From then on, He walked down that mountain towards the valley of His death, the suffering and rejection in Jerusalem. But the Lord did not fear, and therefore neither should we.

This Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord therefore does not just show us the true nature of our Lord, Saviour and God, Jesus Christ, whom the prophet Daniel in the first reading had described in his vision of the things that was to come and be fulfilled in Jesus. But, as mentioned, this Feast of the Transfiguration also reminds all of us that we too should also walk the same path as Christ, and not to be afraid of facing the difficulties and challenges awaiting us if we walk the path towards God.

May our Lord continue to shine on our path, that we may continue to follow Him, taking up our own crosses, and to suffer the persecution and rejection of this world as He had once done, so that eventually in the end we will receive the crown of everlasting honour and glory, the deserved reward we should receive as part of our heavenly inheritance.

May Almighty God, Transfigured and Revealed in His glory and majesty be aith us, protect us and remain with us forever. Amen.

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Wednesday, 6 August 2014 : Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 17 : 1-9

Six days later, Jesus took with Him Peter and James and his brother John, and led them up a high mountain, where they were alone. Jesus’ appearance was changed before them : His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became bright as light.

Just then, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Jesus. Peter spoke and said to Jesus, “Master, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents : one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”

Peter was still speaking, when a bright cloud covered them with its shadow, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is My Son, the Beloved, My Chosen One. Listen to Him.”

On hearing the voice, the disciples fell to the ground, full of fear. But Jesus came, touched them and said, “Stand up, do not be afraid.” When they raised their eyes, they no longer saw anyone except Jesus. And as they came down the mountain, Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone what they had just seen, until the Son of Man be raised from the dead.

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Wednesday, 6 August 2014 : Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

2 Peter 1 : 16-19

Indeed, what we taught you about the power and the return of Christ Jesus our Lord was not drawn from myths or formulated theories. We ourselves were eyewitnesses of His majesty, when He received glory and honour from God the Father, when from the magnificent Glory this most extraordinary word came upon Him : “This is My beloved Son, this is My Chosen One.”

We ourselves heard this voice from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain. Therefore, we believe most firmly in the message of the prophets which you should consider rightly as a lamp shining in a dark place, until the break of day, when the Morning Star shines in your hearts.

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Wednesday, 6 August 2014 : Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 96 : 1-2, 5-6, 9

The Lord reigns; let the earth rejoice; let the distant islands be glad. Clouds and darkness surround Him; justice and right are His throne.

The mountains melt like wax before the Lord, the Lord of all the earth. The heavens proclaim His justice, all peoples see His glory.

For You are the Master of the universe, exalted far above all gods.

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Wednesday, 6 August 2014 : Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Daniel 7 : 9-10, 13-14

I looked and saw the following : Some thrones were set in place and One of Great Age took His seat. His robe was white as snow, His hair white as washed wool. His throne was flames of fire with wheels of blazing fire.

A river of fire sprang forth and flowed before Him. Thousands upon thousands served Him and a countless multitude stood before Him. Those in the tribunal took their seats and opened the book.

I continued watching the nocturnal vision : One like a Son of Man came on the clouds of heaven. He faced the One of Great Age and was brought into His presence. Dominion, honour and kingship were given Him, and all the peoples and nations of every language served Him. His dominion is eternal and shall never pass away. His kingdom will never be destroyed.

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Sunday, 16 March 2014 : 2nd Sunday of Lent (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Today we heard about the well-known account on the Transfiguration of Jesus Christ our Lord on the mountain, when He was transformed and assumed His glory, as a premonition of what was to come for Him and for the world. Jesus was revealed to the three disciples, His closest ones, Peter, James and John, to be truly the One whom the Lord has favour with, the One who would save the world and renew it.

In the Transfiguration of Christ, the world is preempted with the rare look into the glory of Christ, before He is truly glorified at His resurrection from the dead. For Christ is the Logos, the Son of God, the Word of God who created everything, who is God and who is with God since the beginning of time and before. And as such, He is God Himself, who came down into this world in the form of human flesh in Jesus. And in Transfiguration, the glorious self that is His was revealed in its fullness for the first time to the world.

And the event of the Transfiguration itself would set the tone for the rest of the mission of Jesus in this world, leading up to His suffering and death on the cross, as the culmination of His divinely appointed mission. First of all, the Transfiguration established firmly without question that Jesus is the Messiah and the Holy One of God, whom the prophets and elders of the people had prophesied for, in many years leading up to His coming.

Moses and Elijah, who appeared to Jesus confirmed this fact, and again showed yet another fact about Christ, that He is to be a Leader and a Prophet, much as Moses and Elijah had done. As what Moses had done, in delivering the people of God from the slavery in Egypt, Jesus would, as the new Leader of all, bring all mankind, all peoples and take them away from their slavery to sin and evil.

And with Elijah, it was shown that Jesus was the culmination of the prophecies of the prophets, and He was the complete fulfillment of the law of God as revealed through the leaders and the prophets. And Jesus came to fulfill and make perfect the law of God, bringing them to the clear understanding by the people of God. Jesus is to lead us to a new life and one that is blessed and filled with the wisdom of God.

The Transfiguration reminds us of the many challenges and responsibilities that Jesus had taken up upon Himself. He brought Himself to be the atonement for the sins of the innumerable, and He made Himself punished so that we will not be punished as we deserve. Jesus on that mountain affirmed His love and dedication to the Lord, and He from then on was prepared to walk down the path towards His Passion, to die on the cross for our sake.

But in all His glory and power, Jesus did not become proud or boastful of what He has. He did not revel in His glory but remained perfectly obedient to the will of God His Father. And that was why, He did not remain there in His Transfiguration for eternity or for a long time, for He left the peak and went down the mountain with His disciples.

How does this relate to us then? If we remember that the disciples of Christ, led by Peter, asked the Lord whether they should pitch up a tent for each Jesus, Moses and Elijah, that they may stay there longer. When someone pitches a tent somewhere, he certainly will want to stay longer in the locality and remain there until the tent was removed.

We are often like Peter, that we are often reluctant to leave our comfort zone and lingered long in areas that gave us the greatest happiness and pleasure. That means, we do not want to go down the mountain, but remain there forever. This is why the Lord kindly reminded them, and all of us, through His words, that we ought to obey Him, and obeying Him means that we have to go down the mountain, and in doing so, face the reality of our lives.

Yes, we have our ups and downs. We certainly cannot always remain as either up or down, because we need to face the reality of this life, that there are often good things that we can enjoy, but there will also be hardships and inequalities, which we have to face eventually. We cannot remain on top of the mountain forever, for doing so means that we indulge in our power and glory.

Jesus willingly went down the mountain, knowing full well that He was heading to His own death, and yet He continued on and obeyed perfectly the will of God. Can we also do the same? Can we also seek to leave our zones of comfort and embrace the will of God as our own? Can we die to our pride and live humbly before God?

The answer to all of these is yes. And indeed, yes, we can, because what matters now is to give of ourselves to the Lord our God. Let us begin from now on, if we have not done so, to dedicate ourselves to the Lord, wholly obedient to the will of God. May He continue to bless us and keep us in His grace. Amen.

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Sunday, 16 March 2014 : 2nd Sunday of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 17 : 1-9

Six days later, Jesus took with Him Peter and James and his brother John, and led them up a high mountain, where they were alone. Jesus’ appearance was changed before them : His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became bright as light. Just then Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Jesus.

Peter spoke and said to Jesus, “Master, it is good that we are here. If You wish, I will make three tents : one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”

Peter was still speaking, when a bright cloud covered them with its shadow, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is My Son, the Beloved, My Chosen One. Listen to Him.”

On hearing the voice, the disciples fell to the ground, full of fear. But Jesus came, touched them and said, “Stand up, do not be afraid.” When they raised their eyes, they no longer saw anyone except Jesus. And as they came down the mountain, Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone what they had just seen until the Son of Man be raised from the dead.