The Transfiguration of Christ (source)
St. Anastasios of Sinai on the Transfiguration
Upon Mount Tabor, Jesus revealed to his disciples
a heavenly mystery. While living among them he had spoken of the kingdom and of
his second coming in glory, but to banish from their hearts any possible doubt
concerning the kingdom and to confirm their faith in what lay in the future by
its prefiguration in the present, he gave them on Mount Tabor a wonderful vision
of his glory, a foreshadowing of the kingdom of heaven. It was as if he said to
them:“As time goes by you may be in danger of losing your faith. To save you
from this I tell you now that some standing here listening to me will not taste
death until they have seen the Son of Man coming in the glory of his Father.
“Moreover, in order to assure us that Christ could command such power when he
wished, the evangelist continues: Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter,
James and John, and led them up a high mountain where they were alone. There,
before their eyes, he was transfigured. His face shone like the sun, and his
clothes became as white as light. Then the disciples saw Moses and Elijah
appear, and they were talking to Jesus.
These are the divine wonders we celebrate today;
this is the saving revelation given us upon the mountain; this is the festival
of Christ that has drawn us here. Let us listen, then, to the sacred voice of
God so compellingly calling us from on high, from the summit of the mountain, so
that with the Lord’s chosen disciples we may penetrate the deep meaning of these
holy mysteries, so far beyond our capacity to express. Jesus goes before us to
show us the way, both up the mountain and into heaven, and – I speak boldly – it
is for us now to follow him with all speed, yearning for the heavenly vision
that will give us a share in his radiance, renew our spiritual nature and
transform us into his own likeness, making us for ever sharers in his Godhead
and raising us to heights as yet undreamed of.
Let us run with confidence and joy to enter into
the cloud like Moses and Elijah, or like James and John. Let us be caught up
like Peter to behold the divine vision and to be transfigured by that glorious
transfiguration. Let us retire from the world, stand aloof from the earth, rise
above the body, detach ourselves from creatures and turn to the creator, to whom
Peter in ecstasy exclaimed: Lord, it is good for us to be here.
It is indeed good to be here, as you have said,
Peter. It is good to be with Jesus and to remain here for ever. What greater
happiness or higher honor could we have than to be with God, to be made like him
and to live in his light?
Therefore, since each of us possesses God in his
heart and is being transformed into his divine image, we also should cry out
with joy: It is good for us to be here – here where all things shine with divine
radiance, where there is joy and gladness and exultation; where there is nothing
in our hearts but peace, serenity and stillness; where God is seen. For here, in
our hearts, Christ takes up his abode together with the Father, saying as he
enters: Today salvation has come to this house. With Christ, our hearts receive
all the wealth of his eternal blessings, and there where they are stored up for
us in him, we see reflected as in a mirror both the first fruits and the whole
of the world to come.
(source)
Through the prayers of our Holy Fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us and save us! Amen!
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