I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL
REFLECTIONS
One
of my few prized possessions is a picture of the faces of students enrolled at
Maryhill School of Theology, to enable the professors to memorize their names
more easily. This particular picture contains the faces of the seminarians who
participated in the course, “The Word of God in the Liturgy” which I
taught in 1993. This “souvenir” is particularly meaningful for it includes the
youthful face of my celebrity student, Fr. Rhoel Gallardo, a young Claretian
missionary who worked in the thickly Muslim populated and rebel infested island
of Basilan, in the southern Philippines. The Abu Sayaf rebels, notorious for
their lawlessness and ferocity, kidnapped him, together with some female
catechists, for ransom a few years ago. Fr. Gallardo was subjected to various
forms of torture. His toenails were pulled out and he was commanded to rape his
catechists, which he refused to do. He was humiliated for his heroic fidelity to
prayer. Finally, as the Aba Sayaf rebels were retreating when the government
forces attacked, he was shot in the head and died as a true pastor and martyr
for the faith. I would show this “souvenir” to new students and, pointing to Fr.
Gallardo’s image, proudly proclaim, “This is my beloved student!”
In today’s Gospel, we hear a similar acknowledgment
in the authoritative voice coming from the cloud. It is the voice of the
heavenly Father making the divine affirmation, “This is my beloved Son
…” This affirmation echoes the acknowledgment the Father made at the baptism
in the Jordan: “You are my beloved Son, with you I am well pleased” (cf.
Mk 1:9-11).
In the Gospel
episode proclaimed last Sunday (cf. Mk 1:12-15) about the temptation of Jesus in
the wilderness and his subsequent proclamation of the Good News from God, we
caught a glimpse of the uncompromising fidelity of the Son to his baptismal
covenant with the Father. In the transfiguration of Jesus that we are called to
contemplate today, we get a glimpse of the glorious fulfillment of Christ’s
paschal journey and the magnificent destiny of his covenantal fidelity to be at
the complete service of God’s saving will. Indeed, the words from the cloud,
“This is my beloved Son,” received their full meaning from Jesus’
willingness to be sacrificed and from the willingness of the Father “not to
spare his own Son” (cf. Rom 8:32).
In the
context of the sacrifice of Abraham, our father in faith, who was called to
offer his own son, Isaac, and in the light of Paul’s declaration that God
“did not spare his own Son but handed him over for us,” the Father’s
avowal, “This is my beloved Son…” takes on a deeper meaning. Jesus, the
beloved Son, is the primordial sacrament. He is the sacrament of the Father’s
covenantal fidelity to save us. He is the presence of the Father’s tremendous
love for us. For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, our Savior,
his most precious One (cf. Jn 3:16). Indeed, God did not deny his own Son that
we may be saved. The sacrificial aspect of the Father’s love and the beloved
Son’s submission is the cause of our salvation. This is such an astounding
reality that, with St. Paul, we can exclaim: “If God is for us, who can be
against us?”
According to the authors of the book, Days of the Lord, vol. 2, page 84:
“As far as God and Christ are concerned, our salvation is assured. Far from
lulling us to sleep, this certainty keeps us awake because it makes us conscious
of our responsibility: this divine work will be operative in us in the measure
we live in faith and trust, faithful to God’s limitless love.”
II. POINTS FOR THE
EXAMINATION OF THE HEART
A. “This
is my beloved Son …” Do we believe that Jesus, revealed in his transfigured
glory, is the primordial sacrament of God’s love and his covenantal fidelity to
save us?
B. Do
we listen and follow him as the beloved Son of God? Do we believe with our whole
heart that “If God is for us, who can be against us?” How do we
respond to the Father’s great gift to us: Jesus, his most precious One.
C. Do we allow ourselves to be transformed by
this wonderful gift? How do we contribute to the healing and transformation of
our wounded society today?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD
-
Leader:
Loving and merciful
Father,
you
have made us your sons and daughters
in
your beloved Son, Jesus Christ.
He
is the primordial sacrament of your covenantal love for us.
Transform us; transfigure us; Christify us.
Hear
our humble supplications
and
grant us the grace we need
in
order to face the challenges
of
being your own beloved children
in
today’s world that needs healing.
You
live and reign forever and ever.
-
Assembly: Amen.
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE
WORD
The
following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the
week. Please memorize it.
“This is my
beloved Son. Listen to him.” (Mk 9:7)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION
-
ACTION PLAN: Pray the Holy Rosary, contemplating the five Mysteries of Light,
especially focusing on the fourth Mystery: Christ’s transfiguration.
-
ACTION PLAN: Do something for the youth, especially the most rejected, that
will enable them to feel that they are beloved by God.