Sunday 17 March 2019: Second Sunday of Lent

The Lord is my light and my salvation

Each year of the three-year cycle, the gospel of the second Sunday of Lent tells of the Transfiguration. This year we have Luke's account. Luke presents this incident as Jesus instructs his disciples - preparing them for his journey to Jerusalem to meet his fate. The liturgical tradition echoes this outlook, inviting us to learn the lessons of this mysterious incident as we begin our journey of Lent. In Luke's account, in the verses immediately preceding, Jesus has warned the apostles of what lies ahead: 'The Son of Man will be rejected and put to death'; more than that, everyone who wants to be his follower 'must take up his cross every day and follow him' (9:22-23). Luke's account clearly has these warnings in mind. It is filled with reassurance for the chosen followers Jesus has brought up the mountain with him. Moses and Elijah (representing the Law and the Prophets, the great bearers of old Israel's hopes) are conversing with Jesus concerning 'his passing which he was to accomplish in Jerusalem' (the destiny of Israel was established in the original Passover and Exodus; in what lies ahead, this great destiny is to reach its final moment - as the shadows of the old order give way to the reality they prefigure, the Paschal Mystery). From the 'cloud', so often a symbol of God's presence in the first Exodus, the voice of the Father confirms what Jesus has told them of this new Passover: 'This is my Son, the Chosen One. Listen to him.'

Extract by John Thornhill sm - read more at The Emmaus Series | Image courtesy of Hermano Leon Clipart