I’m
fond, I suppose, of any mention of mountains in our Mass readings. For the top of a mountain, any mountain, is
my happy place, I’ve decided. There are
115 high peaks in the Northeast – 48 here in New York, 67 in New England – I’ve
hiked 63 of them, 7 this summer, and have 52 to go to say I’ve climbed them
all.
One
of the things that I most like about mountains is how old they are. Sitting atop a wilderness high peak on a
clear day, looking about at God’s creation all around, it’s not hard to imagine
that what you’re looking at is pretty much the same thing you’d be seeing if
you had been sitting there 10,000 years ago.
You get a sense for how small we are, how temporary we are, how fleeting
our lives are.
And
you get a sense, too, of the great power and glory of God, who created all the
beauty you’re gazing upon from that lofty peak.
I get a real sense that He is God, the eternal creator, and I am not.
Hiking mountains gives one a sense of getting away from our day-to-day lives,
and in a real way encountering God.
That
was the experience, I think, of Peter, James and John as they hiked up Mount
Tabor with Our Blessed Lord. They must
have been curious, I think, about why they were hiking this mountain, without
the others, and I think they must have been confused about who this Jesus guy
was. They’d given up everything to
follow Him, yet they must have wondered at times why – what was He all
about. He was their friend, their
confidant, their teacher – Rabbi – but still they must have been confused I
think.
And
now we know why they were going up the mountain – for there they were given
proof that this man Jesus was not only human, but the Son of God Himself. This was not just a nice hike but an
encounter with the living God! His face bright as the sun. His clothes white as
light. Conversing with Elijah the
prophet and Moses the bringer of the law.
“This
is My beloved Son, with Whom I am well pleased,” said the Father from the
cloud. Here the three apostles are given
not a glimpse but a clear high-def picture of who Jesus is - true man, true
God.
So
I suspect they had to have been completely blown away by what they witnessed –
wouldn’t you be? I know I would be. Yeah I thought He was a pretty good guy, and
He said some things about being “the One” but whoa – He really meant it!
And
of course what happened on Mount Tabor wasn’t only for those three – it was for
you and me as well. Especially now,
especially in this world we live in.
It
seems to me so much of our faith is focused on how close Jesus is to us –
“imminent” is the word – and He is. And we sometimes think of Jesus as this friendly
and nice and even fluffy guy – like singing Kumbaya around the campfire. But how often do we stop to think of Him as
“other,” as transcendent, as GOD?”
Yes
He is close to us, He understands our humanity because He walked and talked,
was born and even died. But do we really
think of Him as God, as all Holy, which means “other” or “set apart.” Do we
really think of Him in His dominion, power and kingship as the first reading
speaks of Him?
We
just prayed together to Him “You alone are the Holy One. You alone are the
Lord. You alone are the most high, Jesus
Christ.” Wonderful words of worship –
but do we stop to dwell on what they mean?
Do we live those words – that He alone is the Holy One, the Lord of our
lives?
Sisters
and brothers, I think when we stop to ponder His otherness, we realize two
things –
First
we realize how utterly unworthy of Him we are in our sinfulness. We get a sense of how wide the gulf is
between God and humanity, in our sin.
How my sin offends God who is all good and all holy – offends
Jesus who is all good and all holy.
In
one version of the Act of Contrition which we pray in the Sacrament of Confession,
in the presence of the priest, yes, but praying to Jesus Himself, we pray “O my
God I am heartily sorry for having offended you.”
And
we go on “and I detest all my sins because of thy just punishment but most of
all because they offend you, my God, who are all good and deserving of all my
love.”
Jesus,
the eternal Son of God, with Whom the Father is well-pleased, is offended by
our sins, because He is God, is all good, all holy, deserving of all my
love. Am I just as offended by my sins,
such that I’m resolved to stop sinning so as to please Him rather than offend
Him? Glorify Him rather than forget Him?
Considering
His glory, His kingship, we might ask ourselves - am I giving Him all my
love? Do I give Him all my worship? Do I give Him all my life? Or do I give Him a little piece of my life,
my love, my worship, content to worship other things too? Is He my Lord? Am I letting Him change me, change my life,
transfigure my life so that I more and more closely follow after Him?
The
second thing is - if we really ponder His otherness, we’ll fall on our knees in
thankfulness, that this eternal Son of God, through Whom all things were made,
in His great love would condescend to become one of us, to be born of woman, to
live and teach and suffer and die – and why?
For you. For me. To save us from our sins.
We
should be filled with awe and thanksgiving that the eternal Son of God, Jesus,
out of great love, with great mercy, would come and stand in the abyss between
humanity and God, and be a bridge between God and man. Taking our sins unto Himself and reuniting
God and man. Yes – He loves us that much.
Thankfulness
is the only proper response when we realize the great gift we’ve received in
being invited to be His disciples, to receive His love and mercy, to have Him
who is God call us “friend.” Thankfulness and worship are why we gather here at
this altar to celebrate Eucharist, which means “thankfulness.”
Yes,
thankfulness is the only proper response to His gift, and resolve, too. Resolve to live lives more and more worthy of
such a gift. And to share that gift with
others. To share our faith in the
eternal Son of God with others, to share the love He pours into our hearts with
others, and to share our hope.
Hope
that one day, purged of all our sins and made holy, you and I too may stand
before the throne of God, our clothes white as light, our faces shining like
the sun, our lives transfigured by the life, the love, the mercy of His only
begotten Son, Our Lord and eternal Savior, Jesus Christ.
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