In the Gospel this Sunday, we hear Jesus taking three of his best friends away by themselves. At first it seems like an ordinary day, an ordinary hike up a mountain.
But, while they are there, Jesus suddenly looks different:
And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white.
Jesus is still Jesus, but his face shines just like the sun! How bright that must be!
We know that Jesus says,
"I am the light of the world." (John 8:12)
Now Peter and James and John can actually see Jesus' light!
Jesus is so full of light that his clothes change, too! They are so white they dazzle. That means they are almost too bright to look at! There is not a speck of darkness in them.
Jesus does not usually walk around so bright, so full of light, does he? Or maybe he does, but usually his friends cannot see it. We wonder what Peter and James and John think about all this.
Maybe Peter and James and John are getting to see a quick peek of what is to come. Maybe they are seeing the full light of God, the light of Jesus' Risen life. We know that after he dies, after he gives his whole life for all, God fills Jesus with new life—life that can never end. We know that the light of Jesus' Risen life can never go out, now that he is risen from the dead. What a gift for Peter and James and John, to get a peek of what Jesus' Risen life will look like!
Jesus does not keep his Risen life to himself. He wants to share it with all people, and so, when we are baptized, a candle is lit from the Paschal candle—the Easter candle—and given to us. We wear a white garment, not a speck of darkness in it, so that everyone gathered can see and know that we carry the light of Jesus within us. At our Baptism we are transfigured like Jesus in the Gospel reading today. Everyone gathered at our Baptism can see a quick peek of what is to come. For a moment they can see the full light of God—the light of Jesus' Risen life—shining in us.
Peter and James and John do not see the light of Jesus shining all the time. Usually he looks normal, like everyone else. His Light is hidden. But for a moment they get to have a peek at it. We do not wear our Baptism garment every day, and people do not see the Light we carry inside. We cannot see the Light that they carry either. Or can we? We can wonder about that. Are there ever any other times when we get a quick peek at Jesus' Risen life shining around us?
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