Transfiguration of Jesus
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| Major events in Jesus' life in the Gospels |
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The Transfiguration of Jesus is an event reported by the Synoptic Gospels in which Jesus was transfigured upon a mountain (Matthew 17:1-9, Mark 9:1-8, Luke 9:28-36). Jesus becomes radiant, speaks with Moses and Elijah, and is called "Son" by God. The transfiguration put Jesus on par with the two preeminent figures of Judaism: Moses and Elijah. It also supports his identity as the Son of God. In keeping with the Messianic secret, Jesus tells the witnesses not to tell others what they saw.
The original Greek term in the Gospels is metamorphothe, describing Jesus as having undergone metamorphosis.
The principal account is that in the Synoptic Gospels; 2 Peter and the Gospel of John also briefly allude to the event (2 Peter 1:16-18, John 1:14). Peter describes himself as an eyewitness "of his sovereign majesty." Neither account identifies the "high mountain" of the scene by name. The earliest identification of the mountain as Tabor is in the 5th century Transitus Beatae Mariae Virginis.
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[edit] Interpretation of the passage
In the narrative, after the cloud dissipates, Elijah and Moses disappear, and Jesus and the three Apostles head down the mountain, Jesus telling his Apostles to keep the event a secret until the "Son of Man" had risen from the dead. The Apostles are described as questioning among themselves as to what Jesus meant by "risen from the dead" (Mark 9:9-10) The Apostles are also described as questioning Jesus about Elijah, and he as responding "...Elijah comes first, and restores all things ... but ... Elijah has come indeed ..." (Mark 9:12-13). It was commonly believed that Elijah would reappear before the coming of the Messiah, as predicted in the Book of Malachi (Malachi 4), and the three Apostles are described as interpreting Jesus' statement as a reference to John the Baptist.
Symbolic readings take Moses and Elijah to represent the Law and the Prophets respectively, and their recognition of and conversation with Jesus symbolize how Jesus fulfils "the law and the prophets" (Matthew 5:17-19, see also Expounding of the Law).
In general, the events in Jesus's life that are said to have taken place in secret, such as the transfiguration, are given less weight by scholars of the historical Jesus than public events.
In the apocryphal Gospel of the Hebrews, Jesus tells how his mother lifted him up by the hair and lifted him to Mount Tabor, which led Origen to identify the Holy Spirit as the Mother of Jesus.
[edit] Christian commemorations of the Transfiguration
In the Eastern Orthodox, Catholic, and Anglican churches, the Feast of the Transfiguration is observed on August 6 and is considered a major feast, numbered among the twelve Great Feasts in Orthodoxy and only slightly below the principal feasts in the west. In some liturgical calendars the last Sunday in the Epiphany season (that immediately preceding Ash Wednesday) is also devoted to this event.
[edit] Eastern Orthodox practices
In the Eastern Orthodox Church, grapes are traditionally brought to church to be blessed after the Divine Liturgy on this day (if grapes are not available in the area, apples or some other fruit may be brought). This begins the "Blessing of First Fruits" for the year. The Transfiguration falls during the Dormition Fast, but fish, wine and oil are allowed to be consumed on this day in recognition of the feast. The Transfiguration is the second of the "Three Feasts of the Saviour in August", the other two being the Procession of the Cross (August 1) and the Icon of Christ Not Made by Hand (August 16). The Orthodox view the Transfiguration as not only a feast in honor of Jesus, but a feast of the Holy Trinity; for all three Persons were actively present: God the Father spoke from heaven; God the Son was the one being transfigured, and God the Holy Spirit was present in the form of a cloud. In this sense, the transfiguration is also considered the "Small Epiphany" (the "Great Epiphany" being that of the Baptism, where the Holy Trinity appears in a similar pattern).
[edit] Esoteric references
In the Book of Urantia, those accompanying Jesus are the Archangel Gabriel and Father Melchizadok, who the bewildered Peter confuses with Moses and Elijah.
[edit] References in popular culture
The account of the Transfiguration of Jesus is detailed in Sufjan Stevens' song "The Transfiguration", the last song off his album Seven Swans.
"Transfigurations" is the name of a Star Trek: The Next Generation episode in which a character undergoes a physical and spiritual change.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Icons and Mosaics of the Transfiguration
- Blessing of Firstfruits on Transfiguration
- Catholic Encyclopedia: Transfiguration
- The Mountain of the Transfiguration by Michele Piccirillo
- Pope Benedict XVI on Transfiguration of Jesus
- The Holy Transfiguration of our Lord God and Savior Jesus Christ Orthodox icon and synaxarion
