Transfiguration

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faithfulness, James, Jesus, John, learning, Peter, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, transfiguration

Today is a significant day for many people in religious communities, including mine. It is the anniversary of “vow day” when we pledged our lives to God. Akin to the marriage ceremony, it was the beginning of a lifetime of learning. It is called the Feast of the Transfiguration because the gospel for today recounts the story of Jesus taking three of his closest followers up a mountain to pray. That was not an uncommon event but something significant happened on that particular climb. Peter, James and John had a vision that day of Jesus, transformed into a being of light—his true identity. This was likely early in their following of Jesus and after it, because of the experience, they were ready to set up tents and stay on that mountain forever. Jesus had no intention, however, of allowing that to happen. It was a beginning, not an end.

And so it is with us. Although we had come to know in some way that our relationship with God was to be the motivating force of our life and we said so publicly on this day, it was not a day of completion. Rather, it was just the beginning of what has been the journey toward the light we had seen then. Today calls us (and by extension all of you reading this) to reflect on our movement toward the light of God, the light that we are growing into on our earthly journey. We celebrate the ups and downs, the ins and outs and the faithfulness of God in whom it began and whose presence calls us ever forward in grace. And on we go.

That Day Is Today

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Advent, Christmas, education, energized, everyday life, glory, God's glory, Isaiah, learning, luster, shift, surprise, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, understanding, vantage point

This morning’s Scripture readings began with the familiar phrase, “On that day…” that is usually followed with a promise of some import to be visited on God’s people. Today it is Isaiah promising “luster and glory…honor and splendor…” (IS 4:2-6). Promise for the future is important to keep us going; I spoke of it yesterday in terms of Advent and the coming of Christmas. But sometimes I wonder if we are really interested in the possibility that awaits us – or even if we believe what we are reading, perhaps based on what we have experienced in past years when the cycle has come and gone with little effect on our lives.

This morning, just to get me through my first cup of coffee, I read two articles from my graduate school quarterly, the Middlebury Magazine. Middlebury is an amazing school with an equally amazing endowment so it is natural to expect great things happening there. I was interested in the interview of the editor, Matt Jennings, with the relatively new President of the College, Laurie Patton, (in her second year at the post) because I had not yet “met” her and was interested in what she brings to Middlebury. I was pleased with what I learned and found it consonant with the article that followed about a pilot program begun there in 2014. Called What’s the Story? it “seeks to alter our understanding of secondary education” by bringing together high school students from several locations and grade levels who work in small groups on a project of their own choosing for almost an entire school year with an adult mentor (Midd grads who teach in the state). At the completion of the research and development, there are presentations around the state as outcome of the learnings and credit is given for the work. Not only are the projects interesting and important but the students learn innovative ways of research and presentation, with perhaps the most important element of all being the process of working together as agents of their own learning.

Although the two paragraphs above may seem unrelated, I found myself strangely energized after having read the articles and easily fell into thinking about how to shift things in my “everyday life” to make more happen interiorly for me during this month of Advent. Creativity is definitely the link. Practices have to be (dare I use the word) relevant and meaningful and necessary tasks seen in a different light that adds to the coherence of it all. I guess I’m looking for a little “luster” today – just a start so that I will notice “God’s glory” when I arrive at Christmas day. Sometimes a shift in perspective doesn’t mean a 180 degree turn but just a little inching toward the goal from a different vantage point. And a little willingness to be creative will surely win the day. Forgive me if you are left saying, “HUH???”  after reading all this. It may be a case of “You had to be there…” to understand my enthusiasm. All I can say is, “trust me. Every day is worth what we put into it and what we get out of it may just surprise us.” So on we go!