And it makes you wonder – why this story? Of all the stories – why this one – with its bright lights, and visions of prophets, and heavenly voices. Why write this story down?
Especially in those first days, and then months after Resurrection, The disciples – the early Christians – must have been unpacking a lot.
So much had happened. They had experienced the whole life of Jesus – with Jesus – Jesus in their midst – but not for long – Jesus was among them teaching and healing with urgency, almost as if he was running out of time. And then they experienced the trauma of crucifixion; Jesus was tried, tortured, and then publicly executed. Then three days later, they experienced him again, in Resurrection. And then, they experienced the Spirit of Christ at Pentecost – with tongues as of fire and a mighty wind and everyone speaking in languages not their own, but yet understanding. And then, as they moved out into the world, they found Jesus’ words in their voices – his healing touch in their hands.And so they told these stories to each other again and again – over the years – and they wrote them down:[3] Do you remember the time we were on a high mountain – and Jesus’ face shone like the sun – Moses – Elijah – that voice – and then Jesus himself alone. That experience of wonder, carried and then handed down over the years.
In the life of the church, Transfiguration culminates the season of Epiphany, as we tell our stories of wonder – God made manifest in the midst of us. Think about our own Epiphany journey these past 8 weeks. We started out with the Magi – just after Christmas. They saw a star in the sky – and they followed it – not sure where they were headed – and we followed our curiosity too into this new year – looking for “light enough for the next step.”We’ve traveled through Epiphany with each other – and with the Magi, and with Elijah and Moses, and the disciples – and we end up here.
What began with a star in the sky, has moved through the generations, across distance and time, through the wilderness, into a cave and back out again, through parted waters, and ends up here – on this high mountain, with these disciples, and Moses, and Elijah, and Jesus.Maybe we’ve experienced it in each other in moments of service – serving in the REST shelter – as everyone settles in at table to share a meal – in a world gone so wrong you get a glimpse of something that is a little more right
We experience wonder in music and art – beauty alive and embodied in the creative human spirit. And we wonder at it.