Sunday, March 4, 2007

Second Sunday of Lent

The Gospel today was the Transfiguration. What struck me the most is that when Jesus is praying He is changed, transformed, and we too are called to be transformed when we pray. As C.S. Lewis said, ( I am paraphrasing): prayer doesn't change God, prayer changes me. If our encounters with the Holy Trinity do not transform us, what are we doing? Each time we pray, receive the Eucharist, go to confession, or any other time we receive grace we are called to change. We need to become more like the One who calls us to Him and less like Peter. Peter's response is so human, he wants to stay on the mountain top and have the peace that it offers, but Jesus is determined to go to Jerusalem. If we stay on the mountain top we cannot bring Jesus to others. The mountain offers security and comfort, while leaving it brings struggles and pain. Those struggles and pain then, lead us back up the mountain as we are filled with God's grace and are transformed.
During this Lenten season, let us welcome the struggles so they may make us ready to receive the message of the resurrection.

1 comment:

Barb Schoeneberger said...

"...prayer changes me." Love this. The mountain is a refuge we can return to each time we go to the tabernacle to visit Jesus. If we don't visit Him often and faithfully, we won't be able to face the struggle to bring Him to others.