“Brace yourself because what’s going to happen is going to hurt.” We hear similar words before a painful procedure. We appreciate knowing when something painful is coming our way.
Jesus warned His Apostles many times about His inevitable Passion. But how could they grasp the meaning? How could they understand? One day Jesus took the “Big Three” on a field trip. Peter, James and John went with the Lord to a mountain. We all like to prepare for outings. Proper clothing, adequate food, water. But we get the impression that Jesus just said, “Let’s go.” The Apostles did not have time or the information to prepare. They were not given any clues about what was going to happen. To their amazement, they were witnesses of the Transfiguration of Jesus right before their eyes. There were no cameras, no phones, no recording systems to capture the moment. Obviously, the moment was meant for them—the Privileged Three. Jesus saw leadership qualities in them and wanted to prepare them for the storm. Were they better prepared than the others? Did Peter, James and John not betray Christ? Easy to be judgmental from a distance. When we are not in the middle of a catastrophe, we tend to be judgmental. “I would not have run away. I would never have betrayed Jesus!” Yet, from life experience we know that when we are under pressure our resolutions can vanish. Without the strength of Christ, we are weak human beings. With His grace all things are possible. He makes us invincible. However, we need to rely on Him and not our own merits.
We all need a “mountain experience”. Time alone with Christ is like recharging our batteries. Countless avenues are available to get recharged. The Season of Lent is the perfect opportunity to remember our dependency upon the Lord. Quiet moments: which are sometimes rare in family life, when we turn off all the gadgets, shut off the noise, close the door to the world to just listen. Folks who participate in Adoration ministry understand the value of quiet time. Since such a luxury cannot be savored by everyone, we take what we can get. Before going to sleep and the first awareness when we are awake—we need to pray. Perhaps a prayer of thanksgiving, like St. Peter said, “Rabbi, it is good that we are here!” “It is good that we are alive, that You have given us another day.” A moment of awareness of God’s presence can change everything. The awareness can help us to survive the difficulties that come our way. And they will come.
Just when we think that we have all our ducks in order, we get the surprises. Surprises like a terminal illness, financial crisis, family separation. Such unwelcome realities can upset our peace, throw us completely off the deep end. We can forget about our anchor—the One who has revealed His identity to us so that we will not be afraid. But we forget when we panic. The same thing happened to the Apostles. They could not understand what “rising from the dead meant.” We still do not understand. However, our Faith is not about understanding, as so many think. Our Faith is about trusting. We know that we are going to die. We know that difficult times will come. We know that from one moment to the next, everything might end. That is precisely the reason that Jesus reveled His identity. He is human, just like us, but He is God just like His Father and the Holy Spirit. Bigger than Elijah, bigger than Moses. Jesus made those guys. He made the world and everything in the world. The best miracle of all is not what Peter, James, and John saw on the mountain. The best miracle is what we consume in Holy Communion. We don’t have to see God from a distance in the mists of blinding light. We can eat and drink Him at every Holy Mass.
The Altar is our mountain. The Eucharist is our Transfiguration. We are embraced by His unconditional love.