URGED TO LISTEN.

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August 6, 2022.
Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord – C.

Readings: Dn 7:9-10, 13-14; Ps 97:1-2, 5-6, 9; 2 Pt 1:16-19;Lk 9:28b-36.

 

“This is my chosen Son; listen to him.” Lk 9:35

A Nilotic proverb says: “There is more wisdom in listening than in speaking.” And an Akan proverb adds: “Listening is the most difficult skill to learn and the most important to have.”

 One beautiful message of Genesis about creation is that we are made in the image and likeness of God. This image, however, will reach its perfection only at redemption. What we are will be fully revealed and manifested only in Christ and through him. Meanwhile, while we are alive, we are urged to do something, to listen to the Son of God. Here is the message of the feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord. A call to pay heed and listen.

The feast of the Transfiguration is a manifestation, an Epiphany of the Lord. Like any other Epiphany, it does not only lead us to the deep knowledge of God but also calls for action.

In the first reading, the Prophet Daniel speaks of a vision he had, and how God was manifested to him. It is a vision of the everlasting Kingship of the Lamb. God revealed himself in all his splendor and gave him a glimpse of the final judgment. This vision of Daniel is a foretaste of the Kingship of Christ. He is the one the Psalmist sings saying, "The Lord is king, most high above all the earth."

In the Gospel, Luke provides us with his narrative of the event that took place at the Thabor, how the Lord Jesus was manifested in all his glory and splendor to Peter, John, and James, the three he chooses among the Twelve to go up with him at the mountain. Besides Moses and Elijah who appeared and were found in dialog with the Lord, the Transfiguration of the Lord conveys two great messages. The first is about what is going to happen with the Lord, his soon-coming passion death, and resurrection. The Law and the Prophets unite to attest that the Cross will be the place of the greatest revelation and manifestation of God. And the other message is not about Jesus, but an exhortation to you and me through the three Apostles: "Listen". God manifested himself in all his splendor in order for us to know him, to listen to him, to put our firm faith in him, and so to be saved.

Without the listening capacity, there is no faith. And without faith no salvation. If Jesus came to save us, we ought to listen to him, have faith in him, and only then will we be saved. As Paul says in his address to the Romans: “Thus faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ.” (Rm 10:17)

Regrettably, we live in a world where people seem to listen to so many things but strange enough, we fail to listen to what is really needed. Many people can spend the whole day listening to music and living in noise. But seldom do we give time to listen to God speaking to us through his Word. Many have all the gadgets but few among us have a personal Bible. Even when we attend masses or any other liturgical celebration, the proclamation of the word and the homily do not catch so much our focus. Many are they who are used to coming late to mass, after the liturgy of the word. The calling of the Transfiguration is a challenge to me and you. The voice of the Father is heard and it says only one thing: "This is my Son, the Chosen One. Listen to him."

As Peter can say in the second reading, his own narration, as an eyewitness of the event of the Transfiguration, they heard the voice borne from heaven. They did hear because they were disposed to listen. Their ears and hearts were fixed on the Lord. We, do we truly dispose ourselves to listen? The word of God is today entrusted to you and me. Do we give time to listen, to live, and let this word bear fruits in us?

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