On Sunday we celebrated the Transfiguration of the Lord. In the gospel, Jesus takes his most trusted disciples up a high mountain to allow them to share in what he knows is about to occur. It is a very clear teaching moment in which Jesus hopes the disciples are going to finally grasp the truth about him. As the disciples stand by, Jesus is transformed before them – suddenly bathed in light and his clothes become dazzlingly white. The disciples also see Moses and Elijah standing and talking with Jesus. Moses was the great Law-giver of Jewish tradition and Elijah the great prophet. 

Jesus then leads them back down the mountain – back to the reality of life; back into the tragedy that he knows lies before them. No matter how powerful a religious experience may be, Jesus shows us that we always have to return to real life. Sometimes we experience powerful moments of connection with God or with other people. Sometimes this might be through a special experience of nature; a meaningful retreat experience; a powerful sense of being ‘in tune’ with another person; a reflective prayer experience; or some other significant experience. The temptation when we have these experiences is to wish that we could remain in the experience. The challenge, however, is to take that experience back into the everyday of our lives – changed by it without remaining in it.