Called to be Sons and Daughters who please God
18th Sunday (Feast of the Transfiguration of our Lord), St. Augustine’s Pastoral Area, Pyape II, Nyanya, Abuja, 6th August, 2023. Homily by Archbishop I. A. Kaigama.
Readings: Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14; 2 Peter 1:16-19; Matthew 17:1-9.
Called to be Sons and Daughters who please God
I am happy to visit you and to pray with you, my dear people of St. Augustine’s Pastoral Area, Pyape II, Nyanya. Today, Christ is revealed to us in the gospel reading as the Beloved Son of the Father, as He converses with Moses and Elijah, who represent the Law and the Prophets, while Jesus is the fulfillment of these (cf. Mt. 5:17).
Prophet Daniel in our first reading presented a vision of the glorious court of heaven. He depicted God the Father as seated on His throne, His clothing was as white as snow, the hair on His head like pure wool; His throne was fiery flames, and its wheels were burning fire. He explained how a thousand served Him and many more thousands were attending to Him. He also saw one like the “Son of Man,” prefiguring Jesus, who was given dominion, glory, and kingship that all peoples should serve Him (cf. Dan. 7:14).
In the second reading, St. Peter relieved his personal experience of the transfiguration. This mystical experience was a glimpse of the future glory, to be experienced at the end of time. Peter, James, and John heard the voice from heaven saying, “This is my Son, my Beloved, with whom I am well pleased, listen to Him” (cf. Mt. 17:5, Mk. 9:7, Lk. 9:35). This is also a call on us to listen more attentively without the unnecessary distractions of today. Even in the Church, some people are armed with their cell phones concentrating on taking pictures or making videos, oblivious of what is going on in the liturgy. We are called to a qualitative listening to God’s word. Also, traditional, civil, religious, and political leaders are called to listen to the voice of love, the voice of truth, the voice of peace, the voice of reason and to resist every tendency to listen to contrasting voices that cause social retardation, fuel hatred, cause the destruction of lives and property, etc.
The failure of listening to God and acting on what we have heard is the reason for most of our suffering in the world. It is the same reason why in our country, we are unable to remain cohesive as one people and one nation. The bitterness and prejudices we express based on religious and ethnic grounds are the factors responsible for the injury to our common good.
St. Peter tried to convince the people of his time that the second coming of Christ was a reality that could happen at any moment. We too are urged to be “ever ready,” to rid ourselves of sin so that at the parousia, we may be found worthy of the heavenly kingdom.
The transfiguration event happened six days after Jesus sought the opinion of His disciples about who He was. “Who do people say that I am?” “Who do you say that I am?” (Mt. 16:13, 15), and so answers the question of the identity of Jesus and further confirms Peter’s confession at Caesarea Philippi, “you are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Mt. 16:16).
The Transfiguration offers us a glimpse of the glory of heaven, and to make it there, we need determination, discipline, and focus, and disengaging from worldly distractions and sinful ways. We are assured that in climbing the mountain of life with Jesus we are never left to struggle alone. By listening to His words, partaking of the sacraments, and following in His steps, we are sure to reach the top.
Our desire is to make it to heaven and enjoy God’s presence forever. Even while here, if we live worthy lives, we can encounter God. No one encounters the Lord and remains the same. This was true of Moses who met the Lord and his face shone so brightly that it frightened the people (cf. Ex. 34:29-35). The same was true of prophet Elijah who travelled for forty days to Mount Horeb on the strength of food brought by an angel (cf. 1 Kgs. 19:8) and at the end of his life, was taken up into heaven in a chariot of fire without experiencing death (cf. 2 Kgs. 2:11-15).
Last Sunday we celebrated Mrs. Felicia Sani’s 86th birthday, a former National Market Association leader. She keeps telling me that heaven is her supreme goal. Heaven should be our supreme goal too, but we must hearken to the voice of the Father and continue to fan the flame of our faith. In a world that often seems dark and filled with despair, we are called to be beacons of hope and let our light shine (cf. Mt 5:16) through our words and actions.
To the priest in-charge, Rev Fr. Andrew Musa, the 109 to be confirmed, and all the members of this worshipping community of St. Augustine’s Church Pyape II, located on a hill, it is my prayer that from this hill, just as on Mount Tabor, you shall have your transfiguration experience to enable you illumine the darkness of our society. Matthew 5:14 reminds us that a city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
