Anyway, today’s supposed pause is not taking place because we have the Rite of Election. This Election should have taken place last week on the 1st Sunday of Lent but then travel would have been impossible on account of the Chinese New Year traffic. After last Sunday, the Catechumens, who are preparing for baptism will be called the “Elect” after the Rite.
The spotlight of the 1st Sunday of Lent was shone on the three temptations. After His baptism in the Jordan, Jesus was led or rather driven to the desert where He was tempted by Satan. The Rite of Election signals this movement for it is the beginning of the last leg of the journey for the catechumens. These few weeks will be marked by intense preparations for baptism which involvepurification and enlightenment. Those preparing for baptism are chosen or elected by God, just like Jesus was led by the Spirit. The season of Lent mirrors the Elect’s refinement and conversion.
Jesus chose God resolutely throughout the ordeal of His temptations. The Elect are supposed to imitate that resolve. And this brings us all to the pause which is the Gospel today. Last week was the supposed Rite of Election and next week, the Scrutinies begin. The pause today is Jesus on Mount Tabor. He had predicted His death as well as taught His disciples about the costs of discipleship. The experience on top of Tabor for the 3 closest followers, Peter, James and John is instructive for us. This pause allowed them to catch a glimpse that for Jesus, death is never the end. It is a prelude to the Resurrection.
The Transfiguration is a phenomenon which is otherworldly. It provides a sense of what to expect in the next life. It is not a trip to fantasyland. Why? If the period after the Rite of Election is considered to be intense, then expect that life will lean a bit more towards trials and tribulations. Unfortunately, this is not a persuasive proposition according to present psychology which is organised along the principle of practicality and the prevention of pain. We want convenience and we avoid suffering.
Our Catholic world used to be at home with the idea of suffering but not entirely from the perspective of just dessert, that is, we deserve to suffer. Rather, we are at home with suffering because it is inevitable. Suffering is a consequence of a broken world which means we cannot escape suffering. And yet it is not hopeless.
Instead suffering can be transformative because we can unite our trials and tribulations with the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross so that good may be wrought from evil. It is only possible to embrace suffering because it is not the definitive mark or ultimate conclusion of who we are. On Mount Tabor, Peter, James and John caught hold of this truth about suffering and about our subsequent glory.
Calvary would be meaningless and all that Jesus taught would be useless unless we have the Resurrection. In an age gone by, the belief that we will ultimately shake off eternal death kept us grounded in the sense that it provided hope even as we endure suffering. Have you ever felt like you were in a wrong marriage? I am not criticising the present age. I am wondering why the earlier generations remained married despite the fact that couples quarrelled a lot. Without the assurance of the Resurrection our suffering has no meaning. Without the Resurrection, the vows to stay together in good times and bad do not make sense at all. The thought of heaven gives strength and sustains us, even those who think they were in a wrong marriage, because we know that defeat here on earth is not the final chapter. Look at how the martyrs faced their death without hesitation. Their loss of life here was never an annihilation.
Mind you. Nobody should suffer. Nobody deserves to suffer. Yet we do and some of us more than the others. And why did God allow for it? This is the mystery which man has been struggling to comprehend ever since the Prophet Job.
My younger brother who has an autistic son. When Mom was alive, my sister and my younger brother took turns looking after her in her illness whereas my older brother provided the financial support. My three siblings shouldered the responsibility of caring for Mom and when it was time for my younger brother to marry, he was blessed with a son who is autistic. It was as if life could not cut him a break as he transitioned from caring for a sick mother and to a highly dependent child. My sister responded to my lamentation when I asked why it had to be like that. She said, “Because God knows he has a heart big enough to love an autistic child”.
Not sure if my brother and his wife felt like they struck lottery and there are many amongst us who know the feeling of abandonment and how God is so far away. A cancer patient, a debilitating stroke, an auto-immune degenerative disease, facing financial ruin. I can assure you, none feels blessed. Cursed, most certainly. Therefore, the Transfiguration is crucial. It does not remove pain or suffering. It does not make life easier. But it does give us hope in the midst of our trials and tribulations.
Christ dazzlingly white garments is a promise that no defeat can hold on to us forever. The promise of the Resurrection is the reason why suffering, terrible as it may be, can be borne with courage and fortitude. Look at Carlos Acutis. Therese Lisieux. Bernadette Soubirous. All suffered and died from terminal illnesses. Today, the Transfiguration invites us to look beyond the dazzling display to our destiny which is the Resurrection. It is for this reason that we invite the Elect join us on this journey, in this pilgrimage beyond Tabor even as we fortify ourselves to bear whatever anguish or agony that life has for us here on earth.
