HOMILY FOR THE FEAST OF THE TRANSFIGURATION OF THE LORD.
THEME: Master, it is wonderful for us to be here; so let us make three tents, one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.’
BY: Fr. Diotacious Chikontwe SMA.
HOMILY FOR SATURDAY AUGUST 6 2022
*READINGS OF THE DAY*
Daniel 7:9-10,13-14
Psalm 96:1-2,5-6,9
Luke 9:28-36
*LITURGICAL COLOUR*
WHITE
*INTRODUCTION*
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as members of the Church, we celebrate Transfiguration of the Lord, commemorating the moment when Jesus Christ, Son of God and Son of Man, Saviour of the world was unveiled in all of His unbridled glory before three of His disciples at the top of Mount Tabor, as He revealed the truth about Himself before the three disciples, of Who He truly is, and what His mission in this world was all about.
*FROM OUR FIRST READING*
In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Daniel, the revelation of truth from the ancient prophet, as he received the heavenly vision of God seated on His Throne in Heaven. Not only that, but peculiarly, the vision included the vision of One of Great Age and one Son of Man, which prefigured the relationship between the Father and the Son in the Holy Trinity. In essence, Daniel had seen Christ Himself, as a premonition of all the things that would come.
*FROM OUR GOSPEL READING.*
In this morning’s gospel reading Peter is enchanted by the vision of the glorious Jesus, flanked by Moses and Elijah, and he wants to prolong this experience for as long as possible, ‘Master, it is wonderful for us to be here’. Peter struggled to learn that there could be no glory without the cross. The voice from the cloud called on Peter, and on James and John, to listen to Jesus, the beloved Son of God, especially when he spoke of himself as the suffering Son of Man. It took a long time for Peter and the other disciples to understand that God was as present in the darkness of Calvary as he was in the wonderful light of the transfiguration and resurrection.
*WHAT WE DO LEARN FROM TODAYS LITURGY?*
Dear brethren, Hopefully we have all known transfiguration moments when, with Peter, we say, ‘It is wonderful for us to be here’. We will certainly have known Calvary moments when such a sentiment would have been very far from our lips. The Lord is equally present to us in both of those very different experiences. In both our moments of darkness and of light, God says to us, ‘this is my Son, the Chosen One. Listen to him’, because the Lord speaks as powerfully to us in the darkness as in the light.
*CONCLUSION*
Dear brothers and sisters, are we willing and able to make the commitment to follow the Lord too, brothers and sisters in Christ, and even to suffer for His sake? Let us all commit ourselves to follow the path of our Transfigured Lord, Who has revealed before us the sure path to His salvation and grace. Let us all turn towards Him with hope and dedication, and do whatever we can to glorify Him by our lives, through Christ our Lord.
Happy feast of the Transfiguration of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Fr. Diotacious Chikontwe SMA
