Transfiguration A + 2.15.26

 

Melissa Campbell-Langdell

All Santos, Oxnard

(Exodus 24:12–18; Pa. 99; Peter 1:16–21; Matthew 17:1–9)

 

When I was a young adult studying in Chile, I had the opportunity to go on a special weekend retreat for youth and young adults led by a traveling group of missionaries. It was powerful, and came at a time when I was really beginning to think about the ministry as God’s call on my future. I felt that religious high you sometimes feel when you just feel connected to God and in love with the world. And I talked to a seminarian doing fieldwork in Santiago, who wisely cautioned me that the mountaintop moment would not last forever. At some point, I would come down, and that was okay too. We need both. The mountaintop moments and the everyday living out of our faith.

Today, Jesus comes out as divine on the mountaintop. Was it the thin air at the top of the mountain that led to this mystical revelation? We do know that on mountaintops, mysterious things can happen. In many other moments in the scriptures, Jesus seems so down-to-earth, even when performing miracles, but here we have a full-on vision. Of Moses, Elijah, and Jesus transformed. Now, a word about Jesus’ transformation. I don’t think he got super white, meaning he looked more European American and less Middle Eastern/Semitic. I do think he got brilliant, shiny, God-like.

This scene made even more sense to me when I read in this week’s reading of The Bible Says So of Chapter 10, “The Bible Says God Has a Body,” in which Dan McLellan states that God is described in the Hebrew scriptures as having a body, often described as male, but which also could have had aspects of all genders, and often described as flooded with light or shiny and brilliant. So, this vision makes a few things really clear. Jesus is God’s son, an emanation of God on earth. Moses and Elijah, cornerstones of the Jewish faith, are appearing, perhaps to presage a turning point in salvation history and also to show that Jesus is continuing the work of the law and the prophets. He is not replacing Judaism but showing a new way of living the Jewish faith. And we have to pay attention.

One commentator has said (in this week's Sermon Brainwave podcast) that Lent is bookended by two very different images of Jesus on a mountain. In one version, Jesus is the way we imagine God- shiny, impressive, glorious, whole, and triumphant. In the other version, that of Good Friday, Jesus is broken, hung upon a cross, on another mountain. We know that again he will triumph, but not without pain. This is the Jesus who is the unexpected God. The God we strive to serve, even as we come off the mountain.

So of course, the disciples want to stay there. On the mountain with Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. This is a dream come true! All the questions will now be answered. They will feel at peace, safe whole. This is the savior they have been waiting for.

But we are reminded that we really have to listen to Jesus. And what is he saying? He will suffer. He will die. Bad things will happen. Reality is going to hit pretty soon after this time on the mountain. But those who have been given this vision have received it for a reason. And that reason is so that they will know. Without a doubt. Who is this Jesus that they are following? No false Messiah, he. He is the Alpha and Omega. He brings all of the truths together and unifies them in a glorious way. That is his inherent truth. But following him means being willing to walk down off the mountain and into the valleys. Into the hard places. Into the struggles.

Joel Chan presented to our local clergy group on Tuesday about a theology of harm reduction, and something he said that really hit me is that when we minister to those in addiction, we meet folks where they are. Just as Jesus did following this mountaintop experience when he healed the epileptic son, meeting the father and son where they were. He heals through the power of prayer. But we need each other’s help and God’s help to heal. We cannot do the hard work for others. They can only do it for themselves, but we can help by sharing resources and, most importantly, by being a loving, stable, reliable presence. We are not omnipresent and must be aware of our own time and other boundaries, but we can be present when we can; we show up and stay consistent. People need this good news that others care and that they are not disposable. They are children of God, even and perhaps especially if they are addicted. They are still beloved. Those who have felt the mountaintop glory must wander into the valleys because they have seen the brilliance, and they can help others believe that a better, more shining day is possible. After all, addiction is the constant search to stay on the mountaintop, something to which we can all relate. But we cannot stay there artificially, and at the same time, we have a promise of a future time when we will all be on that mountaintop together. Until then, we are helping others to remain as safe as possible while moving out of addiction at their own speed. This takes patience and honesty about our own limitations, so we don’t take on more than we can do and complicate others’ recovery processes.
It is only through going to these places that we can share the news of God’s love with others. Because those who need to hear about God’s love aren’t all up on the mountain, they aren’t all ecstatically aware of God’s love and presence. So we need these mountain moments. We need to hold them in our hearts. And then we need to get off that mountain. We need to walk into the valleys and share the good news with those who really need to hear it.

But catch a glimpse of the glory today. You need that. I need that, too. We need that like air. Because the valleys will come, and you need that for yourself, and also to share with those in need. How can you see Jesus anew today? He comes to you, transformed, and ready to transform your life. You cannot stay on the mountaintop with him, but he will be with you in Spirit as you wander down off the mountain, as you enter the valleys, and as you share his love with those who need to hear about it. He will not remain the shining God figure we expect him to be. We will see him in those who are lost and broken, and we may feel that brokenness in ourselves. But in time, we will all be redeemed, and we will all be made well and resplendent with God’s love. The mountaintop is a promise for all of us – for in 1 John we hear that when we see him, we will be like him. All things will come together, the law, the prophets, and the new way, to make a safe path for all to follow and be whole!