Homily by Fr. Ron Nelson
Feast of the Transfiguration 2025 - August 6, 2025
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
Today we celebrate the feast of the transfiguration. Tradition names Mt. Tabor as the site of the miraculous revelation. This feast seems to have started to be celebrated when a Church was built and dedicated on Mt. Tabor in the fourth century. Its placement on August 6th seems to have come about with the victory of the Crusaders defeating the invading Turks at Belgrade (which was in Hungary) on July 22, 1456. This victory significantly delayed the invasion of the Muslim Turks from advancing into Europe. Unfortunately, Belgrade would fall to the Ottomans in 1521 which is why, through a convoluted history, it is now part of Serbia.
In any case, in 1456, when news of the victory reached Rome on August 6th, the feast of the Transfiguration was placed on the Roman calendar on that day the following year by Pope Callistus III. It is set 40 days before the Feast of the Exultation of the Holy Cross.
Today we hear in the Gospel about our Lord’s appearance being changed, his divinity shows through. It is no surprise then that we find great similarity between our first reading from Daniel and our Gospel today, that the Apostles who witnessed this great event would use imagery from the Old Testament to try to describe an event that defies and transcends description.
What is the significance of the appearance of Moses and Elijah, two important personalities of the Old Testament? There seem to be a couple of meanings. First, we see that they are living, that God is a God of the living and not the dead. Also, both figures received God's revelation on Mt Sinai. Moses represents the Law while Elijah, the prophets. In the Transfiguration event, the Father's voice confirmed Jesus as the Son who brings to perfect fulfillment both the Law and the Prophets. The third thing is that we have a manifestation of the Holy Trinity.
It is not surprising that at this great sight that the disciples desired to remain and bask in this glory. Which brings us to another point: that there is something greater than Moses and Elijah here. This is not just some meeting of equals here, so at this point, God the Father cast a shadow over them in the bright cloud and says, “this is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” We see that Jesus is more than a prophet, He is more than a new law-giver, He is the only begotten Son of God. It gives the disciples a peek of his glory, and his coming resurrection.
Although, the Transfiguration is a foreshadowing of Jesus' resurrection, the Cross is not far away. We hear in Luke’s version of the Transfiguration that Jesus is speaking with Moses and Elijah about his passion. Jesus must have allowed his apostles to experience the Transfiguration to imprint in their memory this glorious event to keep their faith in him strong because his time to suffer and die shamefully would happen soon. He told them "the Son of Man will be raised from the dead." He wanted them not to forget this moment when the tribulations came. As I said, this feast is set 40 days before the exultation of the Holy Cross on September 14th.
Although it seems during their grief, they did forget for a time, they eventually did remember. Recall Peter followed him when he was being brought to the authorities. But he denied being one of his followers. Only one of the apostles, John, was present when Jesus died on the cross. They were afraid to be made to suffer. Although, for a time they forgot the transfiguration event, they eventually, by the grace of God, returned to the Lord and boldly proclaimed his name. Are we not like the disciples whose memory is short sometimes?
The cross is always there. Pope Benedict XVI's said that "suffering is central to the Christian mission. It is an integral part of the Christian faith as a whole." The cross of Christ will be the demon's ruin," said Pope Benedict, "and this is why Jesus does not cease to teach his disciples that in order to enter into his glory he must suffer much, be rejected, condemned and crucified. Suffering is an integral part of his mission." The Pope sums up his teaching saying that " Good and evil reside in the world and suffering indicates the conflict of the two. "
When we suffer from sickness, from loss of a loved one, or from failure, we are consoled by the fact that Jesus himself suffered. While the cross is part of every Christian's life, we understand that it is an opportunity to be closer to Jesus. We are invited not to forget those transfiguration moments, the moments of consolation to get us through those difficult times.
In the transfiguration, Jesus was changed in appearance, transfigured. This word is only applicable to Jesus. You will not find it about anyone else. Because he simply allowed his divinity to show forth.
This is how St. Thomas Aquinas explains the meaning of the transfiguration: “Just as in the Baptism, where the mystery of the first regeneration was proclaimed, the operation of the whole Trinity was made manifest, because the Son incarnate was there, the Holy Spirit appeared under the form of a dove, the Father made himself known in the voice; so also in the Transfiguration, which is the sign of the second regeneration [the Resurrection], the whole Trinity appears . . . the Father in the voice, the Son in the man, the Holy spirit in the bright cloud; for just as in Baptism he confers innocence, as signified by the simplicity of the dove, so in the Resurrection will he give his elect the clarity of glory and refreshment from every form of evil as signified by the bright cloud” (ST, III, q.45, 1.4 ad 2).
Finally, the transfiguration invites to reflect upon our anticipated glory, for, really, the Transfiguration was in some way an anticipation not only of Christ’s glorification but also of ours. As St. Paul says, “It is the same Spirit himself bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him” (Rom. 8:16-17).
To quote St. Paul again in his letter to the Philippians: “He will change our lowly body to conform with his glorified body by the power that enables him also to bring all things into subjection to himself.” (Philippians 3:21).
This feast today, then, invites us to reflect upon the transformative power of God, and to look beyond merely the level of appearance, but to allow God to transform every aspect of our lives . . . to transform our minds, our actions, our hearts, our families, and even our culture. May we cooperate with His grace and spend time with the Lord, cooperating with His grace, that we might be transformed into his image.
