Thoughts to Live by | Second Sunday of Lent

by Cardinal Orlando Beltran Quevedo, O.M.I, Archbishop-Emeritus of Cotabato

Liturgy of the Word

Genesis 12:1-4

Psalm 33:4-5, 18-19, 20, 22

2 Timothy 1:8-10

Matthew 17:1-9

First Reading: Gn. 12:1-4. Abram’s Call and Migration.

The Lord tells Abram to go forth from Haran with all his family to a place God will show him. God will bless him and make him a great nation. All the families of the earth will find him a blessing (vv. 1-3). Abram was 75 yrs old when he left Haran (v. 4). The call of Abraham begins a new history of blessing for Abraham and his descendants (18:18; 22:15-18).

Second Reading: 1 Timothy 1:8-10. Paul instructs Timothy about the Mosaic law and the Gospel.

The law is meant to restrain the unrighteous and to show their sins (vv. 8-10). It does not make one righteous, for righteousness is by faith. Sound teaching has to be in accord with the Gospel which has been entrusted to Paul (v. 11).

Gospel: Matthew 17:1-9. The Transfiguration of Jesus.

Six days after Peter’s confession of faith in the divinity of Christ and the 1st prediction of Christ’s Passion (16:13-23), Jesus leads Peter, James, and John up a “high mountain” (v.1). “And he was transfigured before them; his face shone like the sun and his clothes became white as light” (v. 2; Dn. 10:6; Dn. 7:9)

The 3 apostles who are destined to witness his agony in Gethsemane now see his divine glory. The mountain has been identified as Tabor or Hermon or Miron. But far more than its name is its theological import. It recalls the revelation, theophany, to Moses on Mt. Sinai (Ex. 24:12-18) and to Elijah at the same place (1 Kgs. 19:8-18; Horeb, i.e., Sinai).

On the mountain, Jesus is metamorphosed. He had taken the form of a lowly man, but now he unveils his divine glory. He is the Light, who dwells in the light and covers himself with light (Ps. 104:2). His face shines as the sun. He is the Sun of Righteousness.

“And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, conversing with him” (v. 3). Moses and Elijah represent respectively Law and Prophecy in the Old Testament and are linked to Mt. Sinai (cf. Ex. 19:16-20:17; 1 Kgs. 19:2, 8-14). Their appearing with Jesus reveals him as the fulfillment, the sum, of Old Testament revelation.

“Then Peter said to Jesus in reply, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make 3 tents (booths or tabernacles) here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah” (v. 4). Speaking for James and John, Peter expresses his inexpressible wonder, awe, and delight for seeing Jesus’ divine glory and seeing two of the greatest figures of the Old Testament.

“While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud cast a shadow over them, then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him’” (v. 5; see Is. 42:1). With these words, God the Father clearly set Jesus above the Law and the prophets.

In the Old Testament, a cloud was the visible token of God’s presence. God came down upon Mt. Sinai in a cloud (Ex. 19:9), and so to Moses (Ex. 34:5; Nm. 11:25). The bright cloud is the cloud of God’s glory, the “shekinah” in the Old Testament.

From this cloud of glory, God the Father speaks the same words that he had said at the theophany of his Son’s Baptism in the Jordan (Mt. 3:17). Then it was for Jesus to enter into his ministry, but now it is for him to enter into his Passion.

“When the disciples heard this, they fell prostrate and were very much afraid. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, ‘Rise, and do not be afraid.’ And when the disciples raised their eyes, they saw no one else but Jesus” (vv. 6-8). “As they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, ‘Do not tell the vision to anyone until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead’” (v. 9). Only after his resurrection will the true nature and redemptive mission of Jesus be revealed and understood.

The Transfiguration of of Christ was a source of encouragement and confirmation for Jesus and the Apostles as they faced the challenges ahead, including Jesus’ impending death and resurrection. The event reveals the true nature of Christ as God’s Son and as the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets. It offers a glimpse of the heavenly glory of Christ and serves as a pivotal moment in strengthening the disciples’ faith for the trials that lay ahead.

Prayer — Grant, almighty God, through the yearly observances of holy Lent, that we may grow in understanding the riches hidden in Christ and by worthy conduct pursue their effects, through Christ our Lord. Amen.