In Sunday’s Gospel reading (Mark 9, 2-10) Sts. Peter, James, and John are taken up a high mountain by Jesus, and there they have an experience of Jesus which takes their breath away. It was an experience that was so precious and profound that St. Peter could not let it go. He wanted to prolong it indefinitely and so he said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is wonderful for us to be here. Let us make three tents, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” He and the other two disciples had a fleeting glimpse of the heavenly beauty of Christ, and did not want to let go of it. That is not a surprise, is it? Beauty always attracts; it calls out to us.
Yet, St. Peter and the others had to let go of this precious experience – it was only intended to be momentary and it was a preview of what was still to come. They would receive it back on Easter Sunday and in the next life as a gift. We, too, are offered a preview of the Lord’s glory every time we gather to celebrate the Eucharist. Are we properly grateful for that gift?
St. Mark declares that, in the present moment of the Transfiguration and later, the disciples’ task was to listen to Jesus, “This is my beloved Son. Listen to Him.” That is our task too. We have an opportunity to spend our lives listening (gratefully) to the Lord as He speaks to us in His Word, through His Sacraments, and in and through the circumstances of our lives. If we take advantage of this opportunity, we are essentially listening to Him now as a preparation for that wonderful moment when we will see Him face to face in eternity – and we can finally (and legitimately) say, “It is wonderful to be here.”
