March 5 (Second Sunday of Lent, Year A)
Today we get to witness the meaning of the word theophany. It is a visible manifestation to humankind of God. It usually occurs when the Lord wants to capture the attention of a particular follower and He does it in a most, unexpected and unusual manner. Oftentimes it can only appear as if a miracle is occurring, especially when the Lord uses the phenomenon of nature, such as fire, thunder, or a mountain.
In the First Reading (Gen. 12:1-4a) we hear the Lord tell Abram to go forth from the land of his family to a land that the Lord will show him. He promises Abraham that he will make of him a great nation. God says he will bless those who bless Abraham and curse those who will curse him. The theophany that Abraham receives from God is a vision of the great land that he will be given. Abraham also receives other theophanies as a part of his interaction with God. At one point God even takes Abraham outside and has him count the stars in the sky, promising that this will be like the great number of his offspring (Gen. 15:5).
In the Gospel (Mt. 17:1-9) we have the great theophany known as the Transfiguration. Jesus takes his inner core of disciples, Peter, James, and John and he leads them up a high mountain. (Mountains are common spots for revelations and theophanies). All of a sudden Jesus was transfigured before them, that is his face shone like the sun and his clothes became dazzling white. With this the disciples are seeing a review of God’s Kingdom.
Shortly after, the disciples are given a vision of Moses and Elijah speaking to Jesus. They are representative of the Law and the Prophets. Peter is excited. He exclaims, “Lord, it is good that we are here.” He wants to build three tents, one for Jesus, one for Elijah, and one for Moses. But while Peter was still speaking the disciples are revealed another theophany. It is the voice of the Lord coming in a bright cloud and saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” If the disciples had any question about the identity of Jesus, they have now certainly heard it confirmed that Jesus is the beloved Son of God.
When the disciples hear the voice they become afraid. But Jesus comes and touches them, saying “Rise, and do not be afraid.” And when they raised their eyes they saw only Jesus alone. The experience for the disciples ends abruptly as often occurs with theophanies. Before Jesus can make his eternal glory known he must first experience the Cross.
As they were descending the mountain, Jesus told them not to tell anyone about the vision they had just seen “until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.” In the context of Jesus’ final journey to Jerusalem the transfiguration balances off the passion predictions and calls to follow Jesus in his sufferings. It provides a preview of the glory of the resurrection.
The theophanies for Abraham and the disciples in these readings were so great that they really captured their attention. That was what they were intended for. The Lord had a special message for these men and the way to make them remember and respond was with this method. Showing Abraham all of the land that he would inherit prompted him to leave his home and travel to the place the Lord had prepared for him, which eventually became the Promised Land. And Peter was so shocked at how Jesus changed he wanted to build tents as a landmark for remembrance. But Peter and James, and John had to leave behind this vision because it would later help them to interpret the events of the Crucifixion and Resurrection.
The Lord has ways of capturing our attention these days too. For some it does actually come as a miracle – an appearance of Jesus, or an angel or saint, or another manifestation. For the ordinary person it may come in a way that is more subtle – being healed from a deadly, serious illness, meeting a long lost friend from years ago who has a special message, bringing a family member back to the Church, or the birth of a baby to an infertile couple. It is our job to recognize God working through the Holy Spirit in our lives in these types of situations. This is why we sometimes have to leave our problems in the hands of God. It may be difficult but if one looks long and hard enough one will glimpse God’s work and the transformation it produces for all of those involved.
