Transfiguration, an in-between
Somebody asked me, "Why is the Transfiguration of the Lord not popular?"
Why the Transfiguration of the Lord is not as popular as crucifixion or resurrection, or the Assumption or Christmas?
My answer is, “Because the Transfiguration is at the middle. It is not the beginning nor the end. It is the middle. Usually in life, we celebrate beginnings and endings. We do not celebrate "in-betweens." For instance, people celebrate weddings, the beginning of a couple's life, but they do not think of the loving every day that follows a wedding. We celebrate ordinations, the beginning of priestly ministry, but we do not see the struggle of everyday service that follows an ordination. We celebrate the victory of athletes but we forget the everyday discipline of training that led to the victory. We celebrate graduations but only in hindsight do we realize the rigor of everyday study, memorization, recitation and comprehension. We celebrate beginnings. We celebrate endings. How do you celebrate the in-between?
Transfiguration is not a beginning. It is not an ending. It is something in between. Transfiguration happened in between Jesus' birth and his death, in between Jesus' baptism and his resurrection, in predicting between his suffering and his actual suffering. Transfiguration happened in the middle of the public ministry of Jesus. It is a mystery that proclaimed Jesus' identity revealed to us in his birth as the Son of God and proclaimed the glory of Jesus' resurrection to be fulfilled in the future when he accomplishes the will of the Father.
Transfiguration is a process, an on-going, an in-progress, a journey. How can you capture a process? How does one hold on to a journey? And this is what Peter tried to do in the story of Transfiguration. By suggesting to build three tents, Peter wanted to capture the moment of Jesus’ glory while in Mount Tabor. He wanted to stay there and bask in the light of a glorious Jesus. He wanted to live there and be intoxicated with the majesty of the Son of God. But this is not the plan of Jesus. He refused Peter's request for they have to go down Mount Tabor and continue the journey, continue the process, continue the on-going realization of the Father's plan. Peter wanted to capture the moment. Jesus led them back to the journey that will lead them to the right moment.
Why the Transfiguration is unpopular? Because it is difficult to grab the mystery of the Transfiguration as it is a mystery of a journey. A journey which is started in order to come to an end. To begin trusting but there is still doubt. To begin serving but there is still sometimes self gratification. To begin to be good but there are still weaknesses, there are still mistakes. Commenced, but not yet complete. That’s the journey of the Transfiguration of the Lord. A process of a transformation. A journey following Christ. A journey that will not be finished until we reach the end of our lives.
Transfiguration is neither a beginning nor an end. It is an in-between. Transfiguration is a journey - a process of conversion, an on-going struggle to be faithful, a holiness in progress. It is an everyday truth where the real battle is won.
