Transfiguration of the Lord, Second Sunday of Lent; "Safe Haven Sunday"

Have you ever gone to your high school reunion? It’s always an interesting time for people watching, if you’re a professional observer of the human condition like we priests are.  There are almost always at least a few who, still wearing their letterman jacket, still puffing their chests out while sucking their stomachs in or crouching into cheerleader poses while disguising the beginning of a touch of sciatica attempt to remain in the bubble of glory they once knew. Whether successful in the world’s eye after graduation or not, there’s nothing quite like those freshly woven laurel leaves of both youth and victory.  But, as St. Paul reminds us elsewhere in Scripture, those crowns whither as do our bodies eventually, but planted in our hearts is that same desire for glory.

The Gospel today allows us to meditate deeply on the glory in which we desire to partake: our own passing, quickly fading acclaim or a blinding, dazzling occurrence that does not belong to us, but in which we are invited to share.

Jesus, before the great descent into Jerusalem to receive the welcome of a King, the sentence of a criminal, and the execution due a blasphemer, first ascends the mountain with Peter, James and John.

Easily the starting lineup of the Twelve, in some cases with the swagger to match, filled with excitement and anticipation they go up with The Lord as Moses took Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu: to see a reunion in which there is no shadow of passing glory, but rather Glory itself as Jesus is transfigured before them.

Instantly aware as Jesus is transformed before them (metamorphosed) that it is Moses and Elijah who appear at either side, Peter speaks for us: “It is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” Rather than dumfounded, Peter realizes that the Messianic Prophecy is true, this transformation unveils Jesus’ coming in the flesh as Emmanuel, God-With-Us, and like any of us finally tasting the sweetness of heaven longs to dwell there.

The Glory Cloud descends, The Holy Spirit falls upon all of them, and God the Father speaks “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” Which brings these Sons of Thunder and The newly named Rock (Petros) to their knees. This is a moment of Apocalypse for them. And they are afraid.

Jesus, the Lord of All, reaches down as he did only a little while ago as Peter sunk beneath the waves while attempting to walk on water, and He touches them: “Rise, and do not be afraid.” For those whom the Lord invites to follow Him need not fear, even those terrifying moments where God’s voice rattles our jawbones.

Down they go, instructed to ponder in their hearts the true meaning of glory and how that understanding would be challenged and transformed by Jesus again, who would be lifted up on a cross.

Brothers and sisters, whether it is in the home, or high school, or our first inklings of adult life, we are often taught today in our culture that glory does not exist in a cloud where God speaks but rather in being recognized, sought after, consulted, and recruited.

Earthly glory brings with it a rush of heart-pumping adrenaline, a surge of “feel good” dopamine, and after this…a taste for more. In short is isn’t sustainable, it passes, and unless the prize we seek is greater than a trophy that will gather dust and be forgotten tomorrow, we run the risk of manufacturing one mountain after another, where God is not welcome and we are left with no law nor prophet to converse with. We can become lonely and empty, chasing after a glory cloud that evaporates as soon as we think we’ve finally got the mixture right.

It’s no surprise that this attempt to place oneself always “on the mountain” often manifests itself in the form of various addictions. The adrenaline, the dopamine, and the descent after the experience is precisely the cycle that mimics the transfiguration we witness in the Gospel today, except with the Lord Jesus is absent. Typically, we do not invite God into those moments where we are attempting to act without Him.

Missing is the accompaniment of The Lord in the build up, the excitement; missing is the Lord from the “feel good” of desiring to dwell in the moment, and often unwanted because of sinful shame is the gentle touch of The Lord who longs to whisper “Rise, Be Not Afraid” whose voice we silence as we hear only our own.  He will not force Himself into even a broken heart, for that is not love.

Pope St. John Paul the Second reminds us in Love and Responsibility that “A person's rightful due is to be treated as an object of love, not as an object for use.” The opposite of love is not hate, it is use.

Bishop Duca has designated this weekend as “Safe Haven” Sunday, in which each priest or deacon in his parish ought to preach about the dangers of the “culture of use” that results today in a society that has become hyper-sexualized. Not only is it a danger for adults caught in its web, it is especially lethal to our children, whom parents have the innate desire to protect from harm. Often times, parents are unaware of the many ways in which their young are endangered by the phone apps, internet sites, and tricks of marketing to seize this vulnerable audience.

The presence of pornography, as it always has done in every century and civilization down to our own, convinces the mind and heart that using another person for manufacturing “a mountain on which to dwell” by stimulating a disordered desire for pleasure is a substitution for love.

Porn sets up a standard for beauty and worth that turns us away from the notion that we are each created in God’s image and as such have dignity as persons. It plants in our culture, especially our children, that we are objects to be used and to use, and this this utility is love and it is our only destiny.

It confuses sexuality with worth; It robs children of innocence by telling lies about human sexuality rather than the truths we believe as Christians and as Catholics, namely that sexuality is concerned with the mutual good of the spouses and procreation of children; it is truly a source of joy and pleasure for the good of man and woman united in marriage; and it is a source of intimate union within that marriage that mirrors God’s love. Sexuality in the context of pornography twists the truths about our sexuality as a gift from God and masks its beauty in a disfiguration.

Harmful videos and images that are ever present and ready to stream into our handheld devices tempt us as the serpent did Adam and Eve in the garden: with power, the illusion of control over another with a click or finger tap; with possession, to collect men and women to use rather than respect and appreciate; and with pleasure, wherein a desire for sex apart from marital union becomes an idol and begins to drive all our appetites.

While use of another as an object seeks no responsible party, Love of another always carries with it a responsibility: to safeguard and to seek the mutual good of the other.  In this way, parents (and everyone really) are reminded in that gentle touch of Our Savior, that we must build homes where the same from acting out can be met with loving accountability rather than hiding, where responsibility is built up rather than blaming another, and where attempting to cover up when we sin can be met with the embrace of Christ in the Sacrament of Reconciliation who abolishes that sin.

[In our parishes, a booklet called “Equipped: Smart Catholic Parenting in a Sexualized Culture" is provided as you leave the church today to help parents receive the tools they need to combat harmful images in their homes and in the lives of your children].

When we confront the reality that pornography exists and in many ways is an active player in luring us into a cycle of seeking what will fail to satisfy and will almost certainly destroy us, then it is possible to tell the truth about the gift of human sexuality, how it is a healthy part of our lives, a source and sign of God’s love when exercised responsibly, and even a source of genuine joy in openness to new life.

Also, confronting this reality allows those suffering from addictions to seek the Sacraments of Healing provided by the Church, but also the assistance of a counsellor or a 12-step program.

As we join up with the Apostles as they begin their ponderous walk down the mountain to Jerusalem, we’re invited to once again, as Peter, James, and John must have done, to think back to the mount of transfiguration, to the source of Everlasting Glory, Jesus Christ. And we must also look forward to the Cross, where that glory is then made a possibility for us to share.  In the Eucharist we behold our glorified, yet veiled, Jesus.

As he invites us to share the fruits of His sacrifice for us, may it cause us to keep climbing towards heaven in the heart of Mother Church. It is here that we can safely cast off our fears and let Christ raise up our heads. May our observance of Holy Lent prepare us for that never-ending Easter where we will be transformed into glory with Jesus.