The Fourth Sunday in Lent ----- 31 March 2019

Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32

1 Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, "This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them." 3 So he told them this parable:

11 "There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger of them said to his father, "Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.' So he divided his property between them. 13 A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and traveled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living. 14 When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout that country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. 16 He would gladly have filled himself with the pods that the pigs were eating; and no one gave him anything. 17 But when he came to himself he said, "How many of my father's hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger! 18 I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands." 20 So he set off and went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. 21 Then the son said to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son." 22 But the father said to his slaves, "Quickly, bring out a robe—the best one—and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; 24 for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!' And they began to celebrate. 25 "Now his elder son was in the field; and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 He called one of the slaves and asked what was going on. 27 He replied, "Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has got him back safe and sound.' 28 Then he became angry and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him. 29 But he answered his father, "Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!' 31 Then the father said to him, "Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.' "

There was a man who had two sons.

·       We know this parable so well that I could stop talking right now and we’d all retell the story in our minds. What does each character look like in the movie in our heads? Is the father short and sort of roly-poly? Is the stay-at-home son all muscular and grumpy? Is the son who left scrawny and rumpled and hollow-eyed with hunger?

·       We might also assign people or groups of people to each of those roles. You know how that’s done. However, that can be unfair and who we assign each role to says more about us than about the parable and its message. Let just say the father is God and we’re… everybody else.

·       First of all, this parable of the “Prodigal Son” or the “Prodigal Father” is the third in a series of parable about finding the lost. If we took our Bible and read the verses in chapter 15 before this parable – and we should – we’d see a parable about turning the house upside- down to find a lost coin (and then throwing a party at whatever cost to celebrate the find) and then a parable of finding a lost sheep, even if it means leaving 99 others by themselves. Both of these parables seem impractical, but we might remember that Jesus is not running a seminar of proper business decisions.

·       Each of these “finding’ stories reveal the heart of God who rejoices in finding what was lost even if what was lost was impolite, nasty, or just stupid. (The so-called prodigal son told his father “you’re dead to me, so give me my inheritance!” The stay-at-home son was grumpy, petty, and jealous. The lost sheep just wandered off and a business person would call it “the cost of doing business” or “acceptable losses.”)

·       If we take the father in the story to represent God, we have a character who has been watching for the lost son (But while he was still far off, his father saw him), waiting and hoping for his return. He doesn’t wait to ambush the boy at the farm gate, to chew him out; he runs to greet him and ignores the son’s realistic apology and attempt to rejoin the household… as a farmhand. Nope! It’s party time! Fatted calf time and fancy clothes time! Quite a welcome for a boy who burned through his cash in dissolute living, and I’ll let you imagine what that could mean.

·       So where do we fit in? Are we the younger child, who demanded his cut of the will while his father was alive? Who spent his money wildly on what might appear only in our wildest and most sordid dreams? Who starved while working in the meanest, nastiest environment we could imagine?

·       Or are we the older brother… obediently and maybe pride-fully working in the fields, who wrote off his younger brother as a ne’er-do-well? Who pouted and grumped when the stinker came home and got the great party just for showing up? Who complained about how unjust dad was and how they were having fun all wrong?

·       It really doesn’t matter which we are (and we might be both or either any day of the week.) No matter which son is focused on, the father leaves his place and goes out of his way to invite them in. He ran to embrace the youngest while he was still far off. He left the party and went out to talk and plead with the older boy to come to the party because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found. Dad even calls him “my son”, the Greek using a word that is tremendously familiar and tender… τεκνσν – “Child” 

·       The younger boy was dead because he shattered every rule. The older boy was dead because he kept every rule and expected the world to do the same. One commentator on this parable wrote that they’re both dead and still needed to die more.

·       The younger died to his pride by coming back. The elder needed to die by leaving his rules behind. The commentator wrote “You OWN this place, Morris. And the only reason you’re not enjoying it is because you refuse to be dead to your dumb rules about how it should be enjoyed.”

·       If we know anything about Jesus and his preaching and life, we know that life comes through death – dying to self, dying to give life, dying to give yourself. To use a shorthand phrase, it’s ultimately called “Resurrection.” And that’s really what our Lent is all about.

We had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.

The Third Sunday in Lent ----- 24 March 2019

Isaiah 55:1-9

1 Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. 2 Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. 3 Incline your ear, and come to me; listen, so that you may live. I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David. 4 See, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples. 5 See, you shall call nations that you do not know, and nations that do not know you shall run to you, because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you.

6 Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near; 7 let the wicked forsake their way, and the unrighteous their thoughts; let them return to the Lord, that he may have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. 8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Luke 13:1-9

1 At that very time there were some present who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2 He asked them, "Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans? 3 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as they did. 4 Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them—do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others living in Jerusalem? 5 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did."

6 Then he told this parable: "A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and found none. 7 So he said to the gardener, "See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?' 8 He replied, "Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it. 9 If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.' "

,,, do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others living in Jerusalem?

·       Humans, whether or not they have scientific bent, want to see cause-and-effect. If I apply heat to water, then it boils and I can can make coffee or tea or soup. If I have gas in my car, then I can drive to London if I so desire. If I clear my sidewalk, then I won’t slip on the ice. (We all hope that will be the last time we hear about THAT for any number of months!)

·       We’d like to apply that same principle to our life with God. What sin caused me to have a pain in my hip? What failing of mine led to this guilt and embarrassment? Our concept of justice requires an offence for every punishment and punishment for every offence.

·       those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them—do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others living in Jerusalem? Jesus ask this when confronted by the news of a falling tower and of a Roman atrocity. He says that the deaths were not directly related to the sinfulness of any of the people.

·       However he adds but unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did.

·       Is Jesus having trouble making up his mind? Let’s say this was a ‘teachable moment’ for Jesus. People were concerned about the people who died at the hands of the Roman occupation or because of the falling tower. They came to the conclusion that the sins of those people caused their deaths. Jesus tells them that this was not the case. They died because a tower fell or they died because of the cruelty of the Roman forces.

·       Jesus goes on to say that everyone’s sins will lead to death… unless you repent… The call to repentance and change remains and is renewed. He also reminds them that they do no one any good by comparing sins and saying “I’m better because I wasn’t caught in the tower disaster or in the slaughter done by the Romans.”

·       Years ago, in my seminary days, the seminary librarian, Fr. Demetrius once told us in a sermon that every time you point a finger, three others point back at you. Try it sometime, just to see that it works. Any comparison will only turn on us a bite us.

·       Note that Jesus calls his listeners to repentance. This is not done as some exercise in words, but it is real. No call to repentance is made unless real forgiveness is available.

·       Here‘s where the prophetic words of Isaiah come to us: Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake their way, and the unrighteous their thoughts; let them return to the Lord, that he may have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

·       Why would God do this? Why would God wish his people to repent and be forgiven? That’s not how we’d do it, is it? Humans would require a period of probation and humiliation before granting forgiveness.

·       However, the prophet assures us and Jesus’ sacrifice and words promise us: …my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord. In fact the parable of the fig tree that ends our Gospel reading today tells us that time is given to us for repentance and care is taken to see to our growth toward bearing the fruit of repentance (if we use the fig tree as a representative of our lives.) So it is with the God of grace, who’s desire is repentance and life and who tells us so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. Notice how Isaiah gives the Word of God as an invitation: come to the waters… come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.… Incline your ear, and come to me.

·       Maybe we’d best not second guess God, but accept grace, rejoice in grace, and be thankful for grace, for …my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord.

the Second Sunday in Lent ----- 17 March 2019

Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18

1 After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, "Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great."

2 But Abram said, "O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?" 3 And Abram said, "You have given me no offspring, and so a slave born in my house is to be my heir." 4 But the word of the Lord came to him, "This man shall not be your heir; no one but your very own issue shall be your heir." 5 He brought him outside and said, "Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them." Then he said to him, "So shall your descendants be." 6 And he believed the Lord; and the Lord reckoned it to him as righteousness.

7 Then he said to him, "I am the Lord who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to possess." 8 But he said, "O Lord God, how am I to know that I shall possess it?" 9 He said to him, "Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon." 10 He brought him all these and cut them in two, laying each half over against the other; but he did not cut the birds in two. 11 And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.

12 As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram, and a deep and terrifying darkness descended upon him.

17 When the sun had gone down and it was dark, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. 18 On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, "To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates.

"Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great."  "Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them… So shall your descendants be."

·       I have discovered that what I say has very little effect on the world around me. I have also discovered that what I do has little effect as well.

·       I have to say this morning that I am without words. Yes, I wrote a sermon and I found the process interesting… until Friday morning. Then the murder of 47 people at their worship took place in Christchurch, New Zealand. I have to say I was appalled but I was not shocked. There have been killings without number since I have become pastor here. People are dying the world over because somebody didn’t like the way they worshiped God, or didn’t like the way they voted, or didn’t like the way they lived their lives and who they happened to love or didn’t like the fact that they were there and had come from somewhere else.

·       I confess to you now that I am not shocked by all this. This is sin on my part. I want to think better of people and I want to be shocked by these events… but I am not. I don’t know if I’ve become jaded to this sort of thing or if I just don’t care enough.

·       47 Muslim people died in Christchurch on Friday. 11 Jewish people were shot in their synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania not too long ago. 33 Christian people were murdered in Nigeria very recently.

·       And I have done nothing about any of this.

·       I know I had nothing to do with any of these atrocities. And neither have I done anything to stop the next one.

·       Everyone here has felt hatred. Any number of you have suffered under either Gestapo, the Iron Guard, the Soviet secret police or other groups. I know many of your stories. I know how you had to leave your beloved homes and make a new life in what was a strange place. So did the people killed in Christchurch.

·       In 1846, a man named Matthias Dailey left his home in County Mayo in Ireland in the midst of a famine that reduced the Irish population by half and journeyed to a small town in Pennsylvania. He’s buried there… and he was my great-great-great-grandfather. Few know of the hatred those hungry refugees faced. But you know. And so did those killed in Christchurch.

·       A little bit ago I said “Muslim people”, “Jewish people”, and “Christian people” rather than Muslims, Jews, or Christians. Not discounting the importance of faith, I decided to focus on the fact that we are all “people.”

·       Christians, Jews, and Muslims are all “people of the Book”, a term we received from Islam. Spiritually we are all descendants of Abraham… or Abram, as he was once known… to whom God promised: "Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them… So shall your descendants be."

·       Abram’s descendants have their differences, but even the followers of Luther’s understanding of the Gospel have their differences. We may not be able to stop these outrages against others who share the same spiritual ancestor, and still we may be able to do whatever we can to at the very least oppose them.

·       I am embarrassed to say some of these things since many of you know this better than I do.

·       Maybe it will help me and maybe it will help us all to say that today and every day, we will never meet someone who is not made in the image of God, who is not loved by God, and whom Jesus did not die for.

"Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great."  "Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them… So shall your descendants be."

The 1st Sunday in Lent ----- 10 March 2019

Luke 4:1-13

1 Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, 2 where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished. 3 The devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread." 4 Jesus answered him, "It is written, "One does not live by bread alone.' " 5 Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6 And the devil said to him, "To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please. 7 If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours." 8 Jesus answered him, "It is written, "Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.' " 9 Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, 10 for it is written, "He will command his angels concerning you, to protect you,' 11 and "On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.' " 12 Jesus answered him, "It is said, "Do not put the Lord your God to the test.' " 13 When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.

Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil.

§  Whenever you’re down and troubled, if ever you’re wrestling with temptation, remember Jesus was truly tempted in the wilderness. It wasn’t fake; he was really tempted! The fourth chapter of the letter to the Hebrews (4:15) tells us For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. 

§  Jesus’ temptations, however, were geared to him and were specific to him and to his vocation as Son of God and Saviour. Jesus’ temptations are quite real, and Jesus’ temptations are not the more simple and pedestrian temptations we endure daily. They are not like a desire for a second cookie or ‘ten minutes more’ after the alarm goes off. All these temptations are his and they are focused on his Sonship and his ministry.

§  He was tempted by things he could have actually had… miraculous food when famished, control of the world as it was, and divine intervention if and when he might be hurt.

§  All he had to do was surrender his desire to do the will of the Father and do his own will or the will of the evil one who could twist what Jesus saw as good.

§  Did Jesus see these things as good? In cases like this, it pays to remember that no one is tempted to do the bad; we are only tempted to do what appears to be good. It is often the cost of it or the consequences that make the difference.

§  The devil first tempts Jesus to fill his hungry belly with bread. Jesus is vulnerable so that’s the place the evil one picks on. Since the devil hits the points of vulnerability maybe Jesus’ desire to reform the world and to trust his Father’s providence are the apparent goods. The difference is that the devil tempts Jesus to seek those good things on his own terms rather than his Father’s.

§  The devil is a cheat. He never offers something he can actually give. “Turn these stones to bread” tempts Jesus himself to act. The devil has offered nothing except to question Jesus’ identity; If you are the Son of God… If Jesus does this, why wouldn’t he do it again and feed everyone everywhere?

§  As for the second temptation, we need nto as ourselves whether or not the devil actually own all the kingdoms of the world? Well, he doesn’t, even if his corruption is in all of them.

§  Psalm 24:1 says

“The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it,

the world, and those who live in it;
 for he has founded it on the seas,
    and established it on the rivers.” There can be no mistake that the earth is God’s and remains so.

§  In this, the devil is revealed as a snake oil salesman and a swindler, although a crafty one. I hear he has a bridge in Brooklyn for sale, too.

§  In the third temptation, would Jesus’ Father not uphold Jesus if he leapt from the pinnacle of the Temple in Jerusalem? What would it prove if God did that? If this temptation was followed through, what about Calvary?

§  Jesus says Do not put the Lord your God to the test. God will not be managed or forced to act. This temptation returns later in the Gospel of Luke when the crucified Jesus is mocked by the crowd and the soldiers, who tell him to save himself.

§  Don’t you think that Jesus was tempted to save himself then? This is seen as the final temptation, because When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.

§  The Good New today is in Jesus holding to his Father’s will despite temptations. It is through that perseverance that we are graced and saved. So we should know that our temptations are known to and understood by Jesus since he’s been there and if we struggle, he struggles along with us.

Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil.

Ash Wednesday ----- 6 March 2019

Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

1 "Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2 "So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. 3 But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

5 "And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. 6 But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

16 "And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

19 "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; 20 but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Remember you are dust and to dust you shall return.

·       In a few minutes, on this Ash Wednesday, we will come forward and take a thumb-ful of ashes on our foreheads and hear those words - or some variation of them - spoken to us. It doesn’t matter if we are Anglican or Lutheran or of any of the leaves on the tree of the Christian faith. As disciples of Jesus Christ – that’s what we all are – we are being called once again to take the Gospel seriously.

·       “You are dust”: it’s not an insult; it’s reality. We can go the route that many do today and say we are made of dust and that dust is star-stuff, the atoms and molecules that make up the very stars.

·       On the other hand, we could say we are dust and dust blows away with the lightest breeze. Our lives here are passing and realizing that in the best manner leads to the gift of humility. That word is related to the idea of being ‘low’, like the earth itself, the humus in which all life grows. True humility is being what you are, without varnish and garnish or without false humility.

·       We are dust and to dust we shall return. This is the ultimate reality of our lives here on Earth. As I said, it is no insult.

·       When I impose ashes on people’s foreheads, I sometimes use different words, completely at random. To some, I use a variation of Jesus’ first preaching – “Repent and believe the Good News.” To others, I say “Reform your life and believe in the Gospel.” Repent means “Turn around” and reform means “become changed for the better.” These are not put-downs, but admonitions to remember that you might be better than you think, that you can be more than you are right now, that you are more blessed than you imagine.

·       It is not Good News to say that you can do this for yourself. No, grace is the motivator and the power behind the start and the finish. It is not Good News to say you can finish all this during this Lent. After all, Lent is not simply a time of dedicated reform, but a specific time to prepare for the celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ on the festival we call Easter.

·       There is Good News tonight. There is saving Gospel among us. When we come forward to receive the ashes as a reminder of our mortality and a sign that we wish to reform and continue to be Christians… remember this:

·       Remember… that you are dust, and to dust you shall return. Remember…You are loved, and to Love you shall return. Remember… You are God's, and to God you shall return.

Transfiguration Sunday ----- 3 March 2019

(This past Sunday, I took a vacation day and this reflection was spoken by a member of the Church Council,)

Luke 9:28-36, (37-43)

28 Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. 29 And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. 30 Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. 31 They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. 32 Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. 33 Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah"—not knowing what he said. 34 While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. 35 Then from the cloud came a voice that said, "This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!" 36 When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen.

[37 On the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a great crowd met him. 38 Just then a man from the crowd shouted, "Teacher, I beg you to look at my son; he is my only child. 39 Suddenly a spirit seizes him, and all at once he shrieks. It convulses him until he foams at the mouth; it mauls him and will scarcely leave him. 40 I begged your disciples to cast it out, but they could not." 41 Jesus answered, "You faithless and perverse generation, how much longer must I be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here." 42 While he was coming, the demon dashed him to the ground in convulsions. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the boy, and gave him back to his father. 43 And all were astounded at the greatness of God.]

And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white.

·        Through the history of the Church, two opposing viewpoints have constantly cropped up. One says Jesus is Divine only. The other says that Jesus is human only. Both are troubling. If Jesus is only divine, then what sort of understanding could he have of human life? If he is only human, then how is he different from other prophets or religious leaders?

·        The festival we celebrate today – the Transfiguration of Jesus – answers both of these viewpoints. First, Jesus is transfigured up on the mountain, showing himself in his glory with dazzling clothes and hold conversation with Moses and Elijah, the personifications of the Law and the prophets, in other words, the whole of Israel’s religious experience. The voice of the Father tells the three disciples what’s going on: "This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!"

·        The next thing Peter, James, and John know (and that includes us, the readers, through them), Jesus is alone and just as he was before. They go down the mountain, into the everyday and to face the inability of the disciples to cast out a spirit.

·        So which is the “real” Jesus?

·        Both of them are and they cannot be separated. Jesus is the glorious, glowing figure, the Chosen of the Father, fulfilling the Law and the prophets. He is – at the same time – the Son of Man, keeping a few close friends, experiencing frustration over disciples who don’t really listen, knowing hunger and fatigue like any other human being.

·        For Jesus, it isn’t a matter of being “one or the other.” It is not “either/or”, but “both/and.” Unlike the three disciples who accompanied Jesus up the mountain, we have the advantage of years of teaching and interpretation of the Bible; we know the end of the story! As hard as it might be to accept, we see a Jesus who is both human and divine, all wrapped up in the one person. He is the place where earth and heaven meet, where the created and the Creator interact, where time and eternity are woven together.

·        Like the disciples, we need those “mountain-top moments” where the depth of who Jesus is can be perceived. Like everybody else, we live in the ordinary spaces off of the mountain-top where everyday life takes place.

·        We can remember this: it isn’t the mountain-top that makes Jesus special; it is he who makes the mountain-top special! In the same way, if we have him with us in the ordinary spaces… well, then that will be as good as the mountain-top. It is Jesus, the Son of the Father, the Chosen and one like us, who will make the difference for us.

Then from the cloud came a voice that said, "This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!" When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone.