Transfiguration

To my mind, today's gospel reading is one of the most mystical in the NT. It is a story laden with unearthly events that still have theological and spiritual importance.

The story of the transfiguration is a short one; Jesus and his disciples, John, Peter and James ascend to an unnamed mountain and there a series of mystical events take place. For a start, Jesus' face changes and his garments glow like lightening. Then there is the appearance of the two of the most important to OT characters, Moses and Elijah. We are not told how the disciples recognised them, but recognise them they did. Jesus engages them in conversation including events that are to take place soon. The mountaintop is enveloped by a cloud or fog and a voice, presumably God's intimates that Jesus is to be obeyed and he has found favour in God's eyes.

The disciples' response seems strange. But on mature reflection probably normal for an abnormal situation - they offer to build shelters for the prophets. I think they were probably frightened out of their wits and were overcome with awe. Saying something, anything, seemed like a good idea at the time. But in any event, it seems to have had a deep an awe-inspiring effect on them.

Now of course the transfiguration is of theological significance. It acts as link between the old and new testaments although, of course, there was no old or new testament when these events occurred. The Jews would not call their sacred texts the Old Testament, and the the NT was probably not even started on. However, to later theologians, the links between the old and new testaments in the Transfiguration story were clear. As was the approval/blessing of God on Jesus and by implication the mission of the Church.

But I think that the transfiguration experience also had a major impact on the disciples and via them, the church as a whole. This experience most likely opens a new dimension for their understanding of God and spirituality. Knowledge of God is not just an intellectual understanding. Knowledge has different facets. For example, think of love. If the proverbial beings from Mars wanted to learn about earthly love how would they go about it? They could read about it in Mills and Boon or True Romance comics where the heroines are always fair of looks and possessed of exotic Christian name and the heroes are lantern jawed, arrogant, of marriageable age, handsome, rich and of course single. Our visitors could watch Sex and the City, where they will probably learn more about labels than love. Or they could visit the Taj Mahal, the world heritage listed monument to love. They could watch lovers and question them about love. But they will still not grasp the essence of love. Like Joni Mitchell said in her song, ... I really don't know love at all. Love has to be experienced to be understood.

And to some degree so does our relationship with God. I don't want to argue that our relationship with God must include a dramatic religious or mystical experience but there is an experiential side to it. I'll talk about that later.

Going back to the disciples, I think they came down from their mountain top experience changed men. They had experienced the holiness and awe of God first-hand. They were motivated for mission and the strength to labour under the threat of martyrdom. For them the transfiguration was a most likely a transforming experience that opened up new dimension in their understanding and love of God.

Now I would like to turn to mystical and/or personal experiences of the divine that we might encounter. For a start, reports of religious and/or mystical experiences are relatively common. I read of one study that reported that between ten and 50% of people had an experienced something that they considered religious or mystical. Note that I chose my words carefully, i.e., "experienced something that they considered...". More about that later. These personal experiences can range from answered prayers, dreams, healing, a strong sense of the presence of God, visions, conversion experiences, angelic visitations, opening a book and finding something helpful, e.g., the bible and a phrase leapt out for them. There are whole varieties of religious experiences that people can potentially encounter. And certainly, there are biblical examples such as burning bushes, visions, angelic appearances, or Paul's dramatic conversion on the road to Damascus.

Even in today's world it seems the finger of God still touches people, perhaps not in as a dramatic fashion as on the mountain with the disciples, but nevertheless a significant percentage of people have felt the presence of God in a tangible if mystical manner.

Although these experiences might not be dramatic, they can still be powerful and have beneficial effects on the individual and their spirituality. It has the potential to add another dimension to our relationship/knowledge of God. It can move us from an intellectual or conventionally religious understanding to one that experiences God. It can allow us to transcend ourselves and take us to a much potentially gain a higher understanding where love of God is more experiential.

However, these experiences can be a two-edged sword. Things that we think are divinely originated may have explanations that are more commonplace. For example, certain neurological conditions can induce hallucinations, which may be interpreted as visions or visitations. In certain stages of sleep, often between wakefulness and slumber, we may be prone to psychological experiences, hallucinations, inability to move, fear. We can wake up, usually in the middle of the night, and continue dreaming while awake - a time when "alien abductions" occur. For the people concerned they are real and they may not be lying when they tell fantastic stories, it's just that the events can be explained by recourse to science or common sense. Hence, we need to exercise caution in our interpretation of religious experiences. There are numerous examples of events that have been interpreted as messages from God, but proved not to be. Before one of the crusades to the Holy Land there was a meteor shower, this was widely seen as divine approval for the crusade. Given what happened, most people would not agree with this now.

So how are we to discriminate between the divine and the earthly? Firstly, we need to place these experiences in context of scripture, church teachings, scientific knowledge and common sense. Secondly, we need to be alert to alternative explanations for our experiences. Finally, we need to think and pray about them and perhaps to talk to others about our experiences.

Having given the caveats, we also should not be dismissive of personal experiences of spirituality and grateful for any small mercies that we might receive. Of course, not everyone is open to, or will experience dramatic events. For example, it was reported in the press that Mother Therese, went through long periods of doubt and presumably she was not have religious experiences at that time. And she was a saintly woman. Our faith should not depend on dramatic experiences - some have ‘em, some don't.

In conclusion, I think that everyday we experience God. Everyday we can experience God in prayer, contemplation, a sunset, a relationship or in many ways. It does not have to be dramatic. We can encounter an "everyday Jesus" in less dramatic ways. Perhaps we are hard-wired to be open for encounters that we define as divine, but I like to believe that we can still be touched by the finger of God brushing against us. That we still have the capacity to experience God in highly personal manner that deepens our faith. But we need to remember that God also gave us a brain to use and not be too gullible.

The Lord be with you on the Transfiguration and Valentine Sunday.

John Murray
14 Feb 2010 (St Valentine's Day)