The Mountaintop

Homily for the Feast of the Transfiguration

In the Gospel today we hear about Jesus’ mountaintop experience, where He has an encounter with Elijah and Moses that leaves him totally transformed in his human appearance. Peter, James, and John are privileged to witness this moment and they become frightened when they see what happens to Jesus, they almost don’t recognize him.

Based on what happens to Jesus in the Transfiguration, we are left wondering about our own mountaintop experiences. The mystery of the transfiguration can happen for us as well; we, too, can have a moment where the glory of God comes upon us in such a way that totally changes our lives. That glory can be manifested in an overwhelming sense of joy, peace, forgiveness, love or in other different ways. But it is a moment where we are completely transformed.

Each of us has had those moments in our lives whether we recognize it or not. It typically happens on retreats, when we’re able to silence the noise of the world and encounter the Lord intimately. Maybe it was an experience at a Christ Renews His Parish retreat, a young adult retreat, or at Steubenville or Camp Covecrest. All of us have had these experiences where we can look back and see how the Lord uses that moment to totally change us. We can reflect back and see how the Lord offered us an incredible outpouring of His love, His mercy, His forgiveness. As a result, we are given the opportunity to go out and share that experience with others.

As we celebrate this Feast of the Transfiguration, let’s call to mind those mountaintop experiences we’ve had, those times where the Lord has done something incredible for us and brought us to a moment of transformation. Give the Lord thanks for those moments today, that we were blessed enough to encounter Him so profoundly. And if we can’t recall those experiences, ask the Lord to reveal those to us.

May this be an invitation for all of us to just reflect on how the Lord works in our lives and come to recognize His love for each of us. Let’s ask him to give us more – to give us an outpouring of His grace, to allow us to experience more of His love, so that we can then go out and not be afraid to bring the Good News to those we encounter.