The Transfiguration

Jesus took Peter, James, and his brother, John, 
and led them up a high mountain by themselves.
And he was transfigured before them; 
his face shone like the sun 
and his clothes became white as light.
And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them,
conversing with him.

Today is the Transfiguration of the Lord, one of the most significant feasts of the year on the Church calendar.  Here is a bit of trivia for you. This is the only time Jesus performed a miracle that included Himself as one of the beneficiaries.  Here are a few things that I have harvested from this reading. 

Jesus led the party up a high mountain.  Can you name another personage that went up a high mountain to be with God?  I'll give you a hint, his name was Moses.  Every time when Moses went up the mountain he encountered God. In our case today, God is leading the three selected apostles up the mountain where they will encounter God in a very special way. 

Not all of the apostles were invited to witness the Transfiguration. Only three were selected, Peter, James, and John were selected to the exclusion of the others.  Notice that Peter is named first in deference to his rank as chief of the apostles and the prime minister of Jesus's kingdom on earth.  Also, we know Peter is not going to get himself in trouble this time because he is called only by the name Jesus gave him, Peter and not Simon or Simon Peter. 

Jesus, for a few moments, lifted the veil that covered the divine portion of his persona and He was revealed in all His glory as God the Son.  This gift he bestowed on his friends in order to strengthen them for the tough times that were to come later.  This I learned yesterday at Mass in the homily given by Bishop Peter Paul who was visiting us from Africa. I had always wondered what the point of this display was and his eminence explained it well. 

Elija and Moses appear on the scene and Jesus speaks with them. Elija is there to fulfill the prophecy of his return and Moses is there representing the rest of the prophets of the Old Testament. Peter, who must have been dazzled and almost in shock wanted to keep the prophets of old there with them and offered to put up three tents one for Moses, one for Elija and one for Jesus.  But, so there was no mistake that the age of the old testament prophets was over, God from heaven endorsed Jesus by saying, "This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased.  Listen to Him." Jesus and His teachings were to supplant the teachings of old and were endorsed by God the Father Himself.  

Finally, at least for my comments, we see proof of the fact that God does not reign over a dead kingdom but over a living kingdom. Elija was taken to heaven in a "fiery chariot" and Moses had died and was buried.  Both of them appear in lively good health and prove that there is an afterlife and God rules. 

Second Sunday of Lent - Hardship and Triumph

Paul writes in his Second Letter to Timothy 

Beloved:

Paul writes in his Second Letter to Timothy 

Beloved:

Bear your share of hardship for the gospel

with the strength that comes from God.

He saved us and called us to a holy life,

not according to our works

but according to his own design

and the grace bestowed on us in Christ Jesus before time began,

but now made manifest 

through the appearance of our savior Christ Jesus,

who destroyed death and brought life and immortality

to light through the gospel.

Hardships and suffering for being a Catholic in the United States of America actually do exist. Fundamentalist Evangelicals of the Jack Chick, the "Christian" that produces those hateful little comic books that spread nonsense about the Church and Lorraine Boettner who published an error-filled tome with the clever name "Roman Catholicism" form the sources of Anti-Catholic Thought in America which allows the prejudiced to trot out those antiquated lies about the Catholic Church  that have been their stock in trade for years. 

In the 1960's the world marveled as a Roman Catholic was elected president of the United States.  The fear for the "Old Time Religion" boys was that Kennedy was going to invite Pope John XXIII to move into the White House and dictate policy. We know that this did not happen. 

In prior years Catholics were kept from certain jobs and were considered second-class citizens. Even today when Christians, in general, are looked down upon by the liberal left wingers and proponents of abortion and so-called gay rights, Roman Catholics seem to receive especially harsh treatment. It is a fact that at one time most of the mainline Protestant churches were aligned with the Catholic Church in its stand against abortion and even birth control. Today, some of these same denominations now see no issue with birth control and abortion as a matter of choice. Some denominations have admitted gay clergy, and see nothing wrong with same-sex marriage which is an affront to the Law of God. The problem is that these denominations have abandoned doctrine based on the law of God for doctrine based on popular vote. The Catholic Church stands alone in maintaining the pure doctrine from Apostolic times until today. Yet, it is quipped that Anti-Catholicism is the last allowable prejudice in America. 

I don't want to make it seem like it is too bad for American Catholics because it isn't.  Today, while there is certainly still an undercurrent of prejudice against Catholics, it is a war of words and as the old cliché states, "Sticks and stones can break my bones but words will never hurt me."  We are still free in the USA to practice our religion as we see fit and no one can stop us. In the rest of the world, not so much. 

In parts of the world Muslim fundamentalists, spouting a strange interpretation of Islam are carrying on genocide against any group that does not believe exactly as they do. This includes Catholics, Protestants, Orthodox and oddly enough Muslims who believe differently. For the Catholics in the middle east, the luxury of attending mass has been taken away from practicing Catholics as over three-hundred-thousand Christians, including many  Catholics, have been chased from their homes by ISIS.  The passage from Paul was written for these refugees.  These martyrs were peaceful people. They were people just like you and me. They had their homes, their families, their dreams. They also had Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior and it is in His name that they suffer. Children have seen their fathers killed, some of them crucified in imitation of our Lord.  Mothers and fathers have buried their children who have been killed by ISIS because they professed the name of Jesus.  Please pray for the people chased from their homes and those that have been the victims of genocide in the war-torn middle east. 

God weeps when people of any religion kills in His name. We must remember that we know how this story will end.  The Transfiguration of Jesus prefigures His return to earth to bring His children to glory. God is Love and on this Sunday we heard the words of God approving of his Son, Jesus when he said, "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him."   I think we should do as God suggests.