Second Sunday of Lent (Luke 9:28b-36)
Second Sunday of Lent (Luke 9:28b-36)
The word transfiguration means to change in form or appearance, usually this is a glorifying or spiritual change. We might say that it means to change something that is plain or ordinary into something that is extraordinary. An object might be transfigured. A person might be transfigured. A situation might as well. What also could be said is such a change is usually a sign of hope.
The Eucharist is a symbol of this kind of change. Carroll Stuhlmueller speaks of the change that occurs in the Eucharist very eloquently. He says:
“At each Eucharistic celebration we no longer eagerly await the Coming of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. He is present as it is said. ‘This is my body. This is my blood.’ We live for a moment the charity and bliss of heaven. Strangers sit together at one banquet table and partake of the one bread and the one cup. People who avoid one another in daily life, now eat and drink together. The Eucharist transforms ordinary elements of bread and wine into the body and blood of Jesus.”
The Transfiguration that occurs at Mass we call Transubstantiation. The whole sacramental experience, then, is a sign of hope. We see that things are not as they seem to be.
We can remember today that the Transfiguration of Jesus happened shortly after the predication of his passion. The Gospel writer takes pains to say that Jesus took his disciples to the mountain eight days after presenting his disciples with the doctrine of the cross. What Jesus would experience the apostles were going to experience: persecution, rejection, physical suffering. The news of this had to be depressing to Peter and the rest of the followers of Jesus.
The disciples need some encouragement. God provides them with this when they go to the mountain to pray. Maybe Jesus himself needed to be reminded that the cross was not the end of the story. We all need to be reassured in the darkest hours of our life that our existence on earth is not the end of the story. Jesus can transform any situation.
The other night there was as story in the media about an Army Chaplain in Ukraine. His name is Fr. Andriy Zelenshkyy. He is chief army chaplain of the Greek Catholic Church. He has seen more war than most soldiers. He is now in a parish that buries soldiers who have died on the battlefield. He has a ministry that is most difficult. He has seen things that we can only imagine.
The reporter asked Fr. Zelenshkyy about the purpose of his ministry. He put it in terms that were most profound. He said, “The mission of a military chaplain is to preserve human dignity. And this is not an abstract thing. It’s realized in our capacity to choose good, in our capacity to seek truth, and in our human capacity to seek beauty.” How does one find beauty on the battlefield during a war we ask?
The priest described his relationship with Valeriy Chybeneyev, a soldier who is considered a national war hero and who won the Order of the Gold Star, the highest honor of the Ukrainian military. The priest and the soldier would seek beauty during the fight for Eastern Ukraine amidst the carnage. Many mornings they would watch the sun come up. Many evenings they would watch the sunset. In looking at these celestial events they found a sense of the transcendent.
Fr. Zelenshkyy shared how his friend died last week in battle. He was asked what he said to military families who had lost loved ones. The priest replied, “I say to have hope. Hope that everything was not in vain, that freedom and dignity are not mere words. These are a cornerstone of our destiny.” Fr. Zelenshkyy is truly a man of great faith.
The Gospel of Jesus Christ always looks over the horizon to a better day. During this penitential season we are in the desert in so many ways. We have our personal struggles with personal sin. We also look at a world that seems to be spiraling out of control. We stand with Peter disappointed that suffering is part of our human experience. Maybe we need to look for beauty during these difficult days. We need look for new life.
I remember in seminary, after a long cold winter in rural Southern Indiana when many of us were tired of life, the words of one of our seminary professors as he began Mass. After the opening hymn he said, “The crocuses are up gentleman. The crocuses are up.” When he said this, we all knew that the earth would soon be transfigured by the sights and sounds of spring. Perhaps we need to look for crocuses today.
Reflection Questions:
- Am I worn out today? What is has tired me out?
- Do I look for signs of hope? What do I see?
Dear Parishioners,
The numbers of COVID cases have dropped dramatically in Rock Island County. The infection rate has dropped to a low level. The Diocese of Peoria has left it up to each parish to reduce protocols as we see fit. We are now going to loosen some more of our protocols.
As was already announced, mask wearing is optional at Mass now. We also will be resuming the sign of peace during the communion rite. If you feel comfortable, shake hands. On Laetare Sunday, which is the halfway point of Lent, we will be encouraging congregational singing again.
The rules we have had about communion will also be loosened. If anyone wants to receive communion on the tongue this will be allowed. We will be slowly reintroducing the cup. Probably we will have one Mass with both species at first and see how things go. This will start at Easter. I don’t want to consecrate a lot of wine and then have communion ministers trying to consume it all. I believe that receiving both the body and the blood of the Lord is the fullest way to experience communion, but I also know that drinking after another person seems dangerous to a lot of people even though COVID is an air born virus.
In saying all this, I would remind everyone to be respectful of those who wear masks and keep their distance. There are people who have been exposed to COVID who might be wearing a mask to protect others and there are those who are at risk or who have a family member at high risk who are still wary. Wearing a mask is not a political statement it is an attempt to protect one’s health.
If the numbers of COVID cases spike we may have to put protocols back in place. Let’s pray that this does not happen.
May Our Lady, Queen of Peace, pray for our Ukrainian brothers and sisters today.
Fr. Mark
P.S. We have tentatively set a parish meeting for Sunday afternoon May 1st to share details about our building project. Our contractor is presently seeking bids and we will see what the overall cost is going to be once we receive the bids. Then we will submit another resolution to the Diocese of Peoria asking to build. There are a lot of moving parts to our building plans right now with hyperinflation, labor shortages, etc. Please be patient as the Building Committee tries to navigate some pretty choppy water. More details will follow. The best-case scenario is that building would start at the beginning of the summer.