11th Week of Ordinary Time 2024 - Tuesday - Sins of parents and leaders and seeking perfection

 Yesterday, from the first book of Kings, we read of the many sins of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel in conspiring to have the vineyard owner Naboth killed, so they could steal his land. Today, we read how they even denied Naboth proper burial—truly despicable behavior for a king and queen.

Then we read how God sent Elijah to confront Ahab to pronounce God’s great displeasure and judgment upon him. Now, Elijah was not some stranger to Ahab. By this time Ahab knew Elijah's credentials. Ahab had enough wisdom to recognize that this was very serious, and so he humbles himself and repents. And God judged Ahab’s repentance sincere, and extended his mercy.

No sin is too great that it cannot be forgiven. God’s acknowledgement of Ahab's repentance is one of many signs throughout the Old Testament of God's mercy to a repentant sinner—even a covetous, idolatrous, conspiring, murderous, thieving king like Ahab. 

However, Elijah announces that there will still be earthly consequences for Ahab and Jezebel’s sins. Although Ahab's repentance was genuine, repentance does not erase the temporal consequences of our actions. The sins of parents can have long-lasting consequences on their progeny and the actions of leaders can have long-lasting consequences on their nation. This story serves as a lesson about the importance of righteous parenting, leadership and the enduring impact of sin.

The Word of God emphasizes the need for future generations to learn from the mistakes of their predecessors and strive for righteousness. 

In light of the first reading, the Lord’s teaching in the Gospel today carries an interesting lesson. Jesus teaches, “be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect." Oftentimes, children learn terrible habits from their parents. The sins of parents, the fractures in their marriage, their personal vices, their acts of selfishness can have terrible ripple effects in the lives of their children—effecting how their children relate to the world, to others, and to God. 

And so the Lord’s teaching, “be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect” means that children should strive to break the familial cycles of sin—to unlearn the sinful habits of their parents. Don’t simply imitate your biological Father, strive for the perfection of your Heavenly Father. 

The teachings of Jesus are to supersede, replace, and perfect our family’s ways of doing things, especially those behaviors which contradict the commandments of God. 

Thank God for the good holy example of good parents. But we know that there are some Ahab’s and Jezebel’s out with kids. May we set good Christian example for those children and for those Ahab’s and Jezebel’s because they can repent too. May we all seek the perfection of soul God desires for each of us through Christ, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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That during this month of June, dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, all Christians may witness to the tender love of Christ through our prayer, fasting, and works of charity. 

For our young people on summer vacation, that they may be kept safe from the errors of our culture and kept in close friendship with Jesus through prayer and acts of mercy.

For all married couples, that they may be faithful to the Gospel in every dimension of their married life—and that single and celibate Christians may witness to the sacrificial, all-embracing love of Christ for all.

For the sick, the impoverished, the lonely, those suffering from mental illness, those most in need, and those near death: may God, through the mercy of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, be close to them in their trials

For all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers, we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to the supplications of those who call on you. Through Christ our Lord

10th Week of Ordinary Time 2024 - Friday - Reorientation of sinful desires

 As I mentioned at the beginning of the week, we have begun to read through the Lord’s great sermon on the mount from the Gospel of Matthew. 

Jesus' teaching on adultery and lust in today’s passage is part of the larger context of the Sermon on the Mount, where the Lord teaches His followers to cultivate righteousness that goes beyond external observance of the law. Christians aren’t simply to follow the commandments mindlessly, rather our obedience to God comes from a true reordering of values, a reorienting of desires, authentic interior transformation, and the cultivation of a heart that is fully devoted and aligned to God.

Jesus' words about adultery and lust are part of His call for that complete reorientation of our lives towards God. Again, this reorientation involves not merely external compliance but a deep, interior transformation that affects every aspect of our being, including our desires, thoughts, and relationships. Purity, faithfulness, and sacrificial love are good not simply because they keep us from sin, but because they are good in themselves and mirror God’s being. 

So how is this radical reorientation to come about? Our first reading and Psalm give us a hint. They both point to the need to cultivate a rich spiritual life centered on God. 

In the first reading from the first book of Kings, Elijah learns to hear the voice of God not in the fierce rock-crushing, mountain-rending wind, the earthquake or the fire, but in the tiny whispering sound. Elijah reorients himself to God through quiet listening. 

Similarly, the Psalmist expresses a deep longing to see God's face and be in His presence. He recognizes the need to reorient himself from the activities of normal earthly life to actively pursue God. 

Like Elijah, the inner transformation that Jesus desires for us, the reorientation we need comes through quieting our hearts and minds to discern God’s presence and voice through prayer. Like the Psalmist, we must intentionally turn away from earthly activities, to seek the face of God. We must actively create space for silence and attentive listening to God's voice and God’s face.

The reorientation of our lives is only possible through the cultivation of a rich spiritual life. When we seek God's presence in prayer, meditation, and the sacraments, we open ourselves to the transformative power of God’s grace. As we grow closer to God, our desires begin to align with His will, and we find the strength to resist the temptations that once held us captive.

Moreover, a deep spiritual life enables us to see others through the eyes of God, recognizing their inherent dignity and worth. This counteracts the objectification and commodification that often fuel sinful desires like lust.

Let us pray for the grace to cultivate a rich spiritual life, one that transforms our desires and open’s us to the guidance of God’s Spirit who impels us to live as faithful witnesses to God's love in the world, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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That during this month of June, dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, all Christians may witness to the tender love of Christ through our prayer, fasting, and works of charity. 

For our young people beginning summer vacation, that they may be kept safe from the errors of our culture and kept in close friendship with Jesus through prayer and acts of mercy.

For all married couples, that they may be faithful to the Gospel in every dimension of their married life—and that single and celibate Christians may witness to the sacrificial, all-embracing love of Christ for all.

For the sick, the impoverished, the lonely, those suffering from mental illness, those most in need, and those near death: may God, through the mercy of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, be close to them in their trials

For all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers, we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to the supplications of those who call on you. Through Christ our Lord

10th Week in Ordinary Time 2024 - Wednesday - The Choice between God and Baal

 

“If the LORD is God, follow him; if Baal, follow him.”

In the first reading, Elijah challenges the people of Israel to choose between the Lord and Baal—between the one true God and the pagan idol. The subsequent dramatic demonstration of God's power through the prophet Elijah compared to the impotence of the false god Baal and his prophets is a powerful illustration of the need to make the right choice. Choosing God over the false idols of the world is the most important choice we can make in this life. 

False gods abound in our modern day. They might not have names like Baal, but we know that false gods—like prestige, pleasure, and prosperity—are promoted by internet celebrities and worshipped by the masses. 

Consider how Baal worship became prominent in the northern kingdom of Israel. It was promoted by the King, who should have known better. King Ahab, influenced by his pagan wife Jezebel, actively promoted the worship of Baal in Israel, building pagan altars and temples in direct violation of the command to have no other gods before Yahweh, not to mention his duties as king spelled out in the Scriptures. 

And Israel’s descent into error was quick. They had gone from a united kingdom a hundred fifty years earlier, with David dancing before the ark of God, and Solomon building God a temple, to a divided kingdom and the erection of pagan altars and human sacrifices. And how did this fall into idolatry occur? Rejection of God’s commands, the failure of parents to drill into their children the need to love God with their whole hearts, minds, souls, and strength, rejection of right religion on the national and individual levels. The Lord has strong words in the Gospel today for those who “whoever break the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so.”

This passage certainly serves as a reminder to the Church, of the need to hold fast to the Lord and His Word, to make no allowances for pagan idols in our lives, to guard our children from the errors of the culture, to ensure that we are choosing God over those pagan idols in every decision we make.

And again, in a world with so many false Gods, we do well to pray assiduously for deliverance of those who fall sway to the many forms of modern paganism, that they can come to acknowledge the exhaustion, unhappiness, and futility of worshipping false gods, and the truth, goodness, and life of worshipping the One True God, Father Son and Holy Spirit, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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That during this month of June, dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, all Christians may witness to the tender love of Christ through our prayer, fasting, and works of charity. 

For our young people beginning summer vacation, that they may be kept safe from the errors of our culture and kept in close friendship with Jesus through prayer and acts of mercy.

For all married couples, that they may be faithful to the Gospel in every dimension of their married life—and that single and celibate Christians may witness to the sacrificial, all-embracing love of Christ for all.

For the sick, the impoverished, the lonely, those suffering from mental illness, those most in need, and those near death: may God, through the mercy of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, be close to them in their trials

For all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers, we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to the supplications of those who call on you. Through Christ our Lord

19th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2021 - Food for the journey

 

The Prophet Elijah is certainly one of the tenacious, courageous heroes of the Old Testament. Immediately preceding today’s first reading, Elijah had been led by God to confront the wicked King Ahab and Jezebel his Queen for forsaking the One True God of Israel and worshiping the Canaanite idol, Baal.

To prove the superiority of the one true God, Elijah challenges the priests of Baal to a sort of test. You know the story. Two altars were constructed: one for Baal, and one for the one true God of Israel. The prophet whose God consumed the sacrifices would be proved to be the true God. 

So the 450 prophets of Baal, begin to wail to the skies, crying out to their idol for hours, but to no avail. They then gashed themselves with swords and spears to invoke their God, but nothing happened, the altar remained. “Why don’t you scream louder” Elijah says, mocking them, “maybe Baal can’t hear you. Maybe he’s away on a trip. Maybe he’s asleep and can’t get up.” Sweating, bloody, and exhausted, the prophets of Baal, gave up, doubting that Elijah could do better.

So then it was Elijah’s turn. God’s prophet began by drenching his altar with water. And then he prayed. God wishing that his glory be made known sent fire from heaven and incinerated the sacrifice. The audience cheered and proclaimed the God of Elijah as the True God. 

Queen Jezebel, however, rather than accepting Israel’s God became furious, and vowed to kill Elijah. So Elijah flees into the desert, where we find him at the beginning of today’s first reading. The desert, symbolic of Elijah’s situation. Success had turned to apparent failure—victory into defeat. Alone in the desert, distraught, hunted, abandoned. Elijah feels so forsaken, as we heard, he even prayed for death. In his despair, he cries out to God, and even though he found himself in the middle of this barren desert: God hears his plea and sends an angel, twice, to feed him.

Notice, Elijah is fed, not so that he can stay in the desert and wallow in his misery. Elijah is fed, so that he can begin a new journey. God had more work for him to do. And this journey was not going to be easy. It’s going to take him 40 days and 40 nights. But God would provide him food to strengthen Elijah for this journey. And Elijah walked 40 days and 40 nights to the mountain of God, Mt. Horeb, also called Sinai, where God gave moses the 10 commandments. And there on Horeb, you know this story too, Elijah looks for God in the wind, but God was not in the wind. Elijah looks for God in the earthquake, but God was not in the earthquake. Elijah looks for God in the fire, but God was not in the fire. Finally, Elijah hears a small whispering sound, and it is in that whisper for Elijah finds God.

What a roller coaster of a story. Elijah, is given a task by God in which he is largely successful. But then that task has serious consequences for Elijah and he encounters a real low place in his life. He prays to God, and God hears his prayer, and feeds him for a difficult journey. Finally, Elijah comes to his destination, and encounters God in a way he did not expect.

This story is so powerful because it’s our story. Our lives are filled with successes and failures. Times when we seem to be bringing about great victories for God’s kingdom, times when we are experience real consequences for our faith, and then times when we feel utterly useless. Times when God’s ways are not easy to understand, when he leads us on some mysterious journey,  even climbing uphill, with terrible forces set against us. And times when we are looking for God and he’s not where we expect to find him.

But in the middle of it all, in our Catholic life, is food, food for the journey. Like the angel who feeds Elijah with physical food, to build up his strength, the Lord feeds us with food from heaven, the Eucharist, to help us face all those tasks, all those challenges, all those low moments, all those uphill climbs, with strength that comes from Him.

“I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.”

Christians recognize in the Lord’s self-description as bread, God’s desire to feed us with the Blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist throughout our lives. 

Whatever we are feeling, whatever we are going through, our first reaction should always be to come to the Eucharist to be fed by God. In our great successes, like Elijah against the prophets of Baal, we come to give thanks and share the food of victory.. When we are chased into the desert by God’s enemies like Elijah and God is no where to be found, we must search him out here, where he has made his presence known under the appearance of bread and wine. And when he calls us on the mysterious journey, to enter into the unknown, to climb a steep mount, we must come here to be fed with the food for the journey.

It is an invaluable practice, when you come to Church, before Mass begins, to kneel down in your pews, facing the tabernacle and to make a little examination of conscience. This is important preparation for Mass. And kneeling there to ask yourself: why am I here?? What am I struggling with, at this very moment in my life? What are the blessings for which I’ve returned to this altar to give thanks? 

Am I at a low point in which God cannot be detected in your life? God help me to see you in the strange, mysterious events of my life? 

Kneeling before mass we do well to identify these things? What am I joyful about? What am I sad about? Angry about? Fearful about? It is important to get to mass early, to express these things to God. And to recognize that in the Eucharist we are about to celebrate is the answer to your prayers. The strength we need, the grace we need to remain faithful to God amidst all the challenges of life is given, in the Eucharist.

Also, praying before mass, we do well to identify those people, those closest to us, who have fallen away from God, who do not know, or have forgotten, that Jesus is here waiting for them. Before Mass call them to mind, bring to God their woundedness, their suffering, their confusion, their addictions. Ask God, through this Eucharist, to help you be the instrument of leading them home, here, to the family table, to Jesus who loves them and wants to feed them with the supersubstantial bread that will enable them to survive this earthly journey with our souls intact. 

“I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.”

May the Eucharist we celebrate and share today help us to remain faithful to God throughout all of our challenges, to know God’s presence with us throughout those challenges, and be led through them, to eternal life, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

December 23 2019 - Pointing to Christ

Two days before Christmas, the Church reads to us from the prophet Malachi.  Malachi was the last of the Old Testament Prophets, appearing on the scene 300 years after the prophet Isaiah, but still about 400 years before the birth of Christ. 

Malachi prophecies about the events right before the coming of the Messiah. One like Elijah would come as a precursor to the Messiah, and he would help the people prepare for the Messiah, as we heard, “by turning the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers.”

What does that mean? It means we best prepare for the Messiah by turning away from what is trivial, superficial, and spiritually harmful, to what is most important to the life of the soul.

In the Gospel, we read of the naming of Jesus’ precursor, John the Baptist, who certainly in the spirit of Elijah preaches repentance—metanoia—which literally means turning—turning one’s heart away from the trivial and sinful, and turning it back to God.

Elijah was not what we call a “literary prophet” like Isaiah, Elijah did not write anything down, there is no old testament book of the prophet Elijah. Rather, Elijah was an action prophet, his prophetic actions pointed people to God. So, too with John the Baptist. The Baptist never wrote anything down. Rather, his actions were prophetic. He went to the desert to preach, he baptized people, he wore strange clothes and ate strange food—even his vesture and his diet pointed people to God.

So, too with us, Christians are to be people of action; our actions, our lives are to point others to God. Certainly, we point people to God by following the precepts of our faith: attending mass, engaging in devotional prayers, engaging in works of charity, turning away from the non-essentials in order to focus on Christ.

The final O Antiphon sings of the Messiah as Emmanuel, King and Law-giver, the awaited Savior of the nations. In our upcoming Christmas celebrations may we remain turned toward Christ in all things, and in the Spirit of Elijah and John the Baptist, by our words, our actions, attitudes and efforts, help others do the same, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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May Christ, the Wisdom which comes from the mouth of God, guide us in knowledge and love.
May Christ, leader of the House of Israel, bring deliverance to all of the oppressed.
May Christ, the Root of Jesse, come to the aid of nations and leaders of nations to walk in the ways of peace.
May Christ, Key of David, free all those captive to sin.
May Christ, the Morning Star, enlighten those who dwell in the shadow of death.
May Christ, King of the Nations, reconcile all divisions caused by sin.
May Christ, Emmanuel, God with us, bring comfort to all those who mourn.
Almighty ever-living God, who brings salvation to all and desire that no one should perish, hear the prayers of your people and grant that the course of our world may be directed by your peaceful rule and your Church rejoice in tranquility and devotion. Through Christ our Lord.

July 16 2018 - Our Lady of Mt. Carmel - Model of the Interior Life

Today we have the joy of celebrating the feast of Our Lady of Mt Carmel.

Our Lady is venerated under this title by the Carmelite Order who looks to her as their special patroness and protector.

The Scapular of the Carmelite Order, the Brown Scapular, is a devotion that reminds us of Our Lady’s protection of the Church. Today would be a wonderful day to wear your brown scapular if you’ve fallen out of the habit.

Our Lady is venerated by this title not only for her role as protector, but as a model of the interior life, which has a long history on Mt. Carmel.

It is said that after his victory over the false prophets of Baal, the prophet Elijah withdrew to Mt. Carmel to prayerfully await the fulfillment of God’s promises. In that tradition, Mt Carmel became home to hermits and contemplatives who sought to deepen their connection with God through a life of quiet prayer.

The first Carmelite monks looked to our Lady as a model for this life of quiet and prayer. For, Scripture tells us that Mary through contemplation and prayerful listening to God, kept and pondered in her heart the words of God.

In many paintings of the Annunciation, Mary is depicted with the scriptures open on her lap, to show that she had made her mind, her body, her heart a sanctuary for the Eternal Word to dwell, prior to him becoming incarnate in her womb. St. Augustine put it this way, he said, "Mary, full of grace, first conceived Jesus in her heart before she conceived him in her womb."

So too every Christian is to follow Our Lady’s example, in making our hearts a sanctuary for God. There she be a point every day, where we could be found with the scriptures upon our lap, pondering the promises of God and the mysteries of God, a point every day where we become quiet enough to hear the tiny whisper of God’s voice in the silence of our hearts.

Our Lady’s example certainly serves as a remedy to the noise and distractions of our modern era, and protects us from its errors and seductions. As we prayed in the Collect, “fortified by her protection, may we reach the mountain which is Christ” by following her example of prayer, contemplation, purity, and the perfection of charity, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That all Christians may grow in prayerfulness and fidelity to the Divine Will through the intercession and example of Our Lady.

For an increase in vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life, for blessings upon the Carmelite Order as it works and prays for the good of the Church.

That our young people on summer vacation may be protected from all physical and spiritual harm, shielded from the errors and perversions of the world, and kept in closeness to God through prayer and virtue.

For Pope Francis’ prayer intention for the month of July: That priests, who experience fatigue and loneliness in their pastoral work, may find help and comfort in their intimacy with the Lord and in their friendship with their brother priests.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, for all those recovering from or undergoing surgery today, and for the consolation of the dying.

For all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers, we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to the supplications of those who call on you. Through Christ our Lord

10th Week of OT 2018 - Friday - Tiny Whispers and Clear Teachings

What an interesting dichotomy of readings.

On one hand, from the first book of Kings, we hear the beloved account of Elijah, listening on Mt Horeb for the voice of God. And the voice of God was not in the fierce rock-crushing, mountain-rending wind, the earthquake or the fire, but in the tiny whispering sound. And it was this barely detectable whisper that sent the prophet Elijah on his sacred mission.

On the other hand, in our Gospel, Jesus is giving this rather blunt-force moral teaching on how to avoid sexual temptation and the sinfulness of illegitimate remarriage after divorce.

Our scriptures hold these two readings side-by-side for us, to remind us, perhaps, that it is not either-or, but, both-and.

Yes, God speaks to us in the quiet, in the silence. And so we have a duty to listen to him there, in the silence, the duty to quiet down our lives every day to hear that whisper. The inspiration to go out to serve the needy, to reach out to a down-trodden neighbor, the impulse to offer one’s life by following a religious vocation, these messages often come in a whisper.

But then, God knows that we also need the very clear, loud voice of the moral teaching of the Church. When it comes down to the difference between right-and-wrong the voice of God is pretty clear.

I think part of today’s religious confusion is that we want inspiration to come in the form of undeniably loud signs or bright-neon lights,  “bring food to the hungry”, “join the seminary.” And some want the clear moral teaching of the Church to be hushed, to be left to the individual to discern for themselves. But we must develop an ear, an obedience, to both ways the voice of God, the Word of God, comes to us: obedient to those quiet inspirations and obedient to the clear moral teaching of the Church’s magisterium.

“Whoever has ears, let them hear” and follow the Lord’s voice faithfully and courageously, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
 
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For all the priests of our diocese beginning new assignments this week, for their attentiveness to the needs of those they serve.

For those experiencing discouragement or despair, that they may know the goodness and closeness of God through the charity of faithful Christians.

For the unity of the Church, for the conversion of those in error, for those who deny God’s existence or despair of his mercy.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, immigrants and refugees, victims of natural disaster, war, and terrorism, for all those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, for their comfort, and the consolation of their families.

For all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers, we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to the supplications of those who call on you. Through Christ our Lord

2nd Sunday of Lent 2018 - Desert & Mountaintop

Last week, the Lenten liturgy presented us with the Gospel of Jesus' temptations in the desert; we reflect this week on the extraordinary event of the Transfiguration. Pope Benedict once commented, that these two episodes serve as “pillars on which to build the entire structure of Lent until Easter, and indeed, the entire structure of Christian life.”

On one hand, Jesus’ struggle in the desert, shows us how Jesus shares in our humanity, even in our human temptations. He hungered as we hungered, he thirsted as we thirst, and he was tempted, as we are tempted.

Now, his temptations were on a bit different scale than ours. We are not tempted to turn stones into bread, or to use divine power to become a sort of world ruler, like Jesus. But we are tempted according to our situation in life. A 5 year old is tempted to do what he knows is wrong, stealing the toy from his sibling, obstinately refusing the wishes of his parents. A 15 year-old is tempted with 15-year old sins. Spouses and parents are tempted with sins against the patience and kindness and faithfulness for spouse and children which should rule over their hearts. Politicians are tempted to misuse their power and influence for selfish reasons.

But the Lord’s temptations were real, just like ours: to misuse the power, the time, the goods, we have for selfish means. And this struggle against temptation is the great struggle of the Christian life.
But the Lord was prepared for his desert temptations because, over those 40 days, he had fasted and prayed. And so the Lord sets the model for us, his human brothers and sisters, he sets the pattern for our own Lenten journey. We too are to fast from earthly pleasures—snacks, desserts, entertainment, rich food and drink—in order to remember that “man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.”

Some people think that they don’t have to fast during Lent, they’ll just perform extra acts of charity. But that is not consistent with our Catholic Tradition, the scriptures, the prayers, the writings of the saints and the Popes, or the example of Our Lord Himself, who Himself fasted, and taught that his disciples would have to fast, as well. Lenten fasting helps us to deepen our hunger for the “true food”, which is doing the will of God.

The first sin of the human race involved food and grasping for power that didn’t belong to us. And so, If Adam disobeyed the Lord’s command, that he should not eat the forbidden fruit, the believer, through Lenten fasting, submits himself humbly to God. And that humility is a bedrock basic attitude for the Christian life.

So, the Lord going out into the desert, to fast and pray and face his temptations serves as the first pillar of Lent.

The second pillar is the Transfiguration atop Mt. Tabor, which we read every year on the Second Sunday of Lent.

The Mountain Top in scripture is always the place of divine encounter. It is where faithfulness is exercised and God is revealed. On Mount Moriah, Abraham showed his faith, and God revealed that he did not desire human sacrifice, he desires something greater, the total surrender of our hearts. Abraham was to be the father of the holy nation of Israel, a people who offered their whole hearts in surrender to God’s will, God’s plan.

So too, Moses encounters God on Mount Sinai. Moses, who faithfully led the Israelites in their exodus from Egyptian slavery to the promised land, encounters God, who reveals his law, his commandments, that his people may refrain from evil and sin, which are another form of slavery. God desires that his people be free not just from physical slavery, but spiritual slavery as well.

Elijah, too, with whom Jesus converses during His Transfiguration also encountered God on a mountain. On Mt. Carmel, the faithful prophet Elijah confronted the priests of the false Canaanite god Baal, who did demand child-sacrifice by the way. Through faithful Elijah, God reveals he is the One True God, and the futility of the false religions.

So, now Jesus and his closest disciples ascend Mount Tabor. And we see that same pattern again. Jesus, shows himself to be the faithful Son of his Father, willing to undergo suffering, crucifixion, and death. Then God’s glory is revealed. Jesus becomes transfigured, the dazzling glory of his divinity shines forth, and the voice of the Father speaks from heaven, “This is my beloved Son.”

If in the Desert Jesus showed his share in our humanity, on Mount Tabor he shows that through Him, Humanity will share in His divinity. That the cross is not the defeat of God, but rather the royal road of heaven for man; that our sufferings and the fortitude we exert in resisting temptation, when united to Christ leads to life.

So, the Lord’s white garment on Tabor prefigures the robe of his glorious resurrection, as well as the white garment of the baptized. For through baptism, we receive the white garment of the saved; we are united to Christ in his saving death, and are promised that we will rise with Him, in glorious resurrection.

Two pillars of the Lenten season: Desert and Mountaintop. In Lent, we are to be desert travelers with Jesus, fasting with him, turning away from creature comforts and earthly pleasures, to strip away the non-essentials that we may trust all the more in God. And in Lent, we are to be fellow mountain climbers with Christ, seeking the face of God and the will of God in our Lenten prayer, strengthening our Hope in Christ’s promise of resurrection and an eternal Easter.

So every day, we must climb the mountain of prayer. As we heard on Ash Wedneday, each day we are to go to a secluded place, shut the door, and listening to the Word of God. Our prayer will sustain us as we carry our crosses and encounter our hardships and face our temptations, our prayer will bring us the sweetness of God in the bitter times of life, the refreshment of God in the arid times of life, the peace of God in the chaotic times of life. Pope St. Leo the Great said, “when it comes to obeying the commandments or enduring adversity, the words uttered by the Father should always echo in our ears: This is my Son, the beloved, in whom I am well pleased; listen to Him.”

After facing temptation once again in the Garden of Gethsemene, on Good Friday, Jesus, the faithful son, climbs the final mountain, mount Calvary. God’s divine love, God’s love for us sinners, is fully revealed on that mountain, the mount of the cross. May His Divine Life, that radical aversion to sin, that burning desire to do the will of the Father, fill our hearts and lives as well, for the glory of god and salvation of souls.