FIRST READING: Genesis 15: 5-12; 17-18. The Lord took Abram outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your descendants be.” And he believed the Lord; and he reckoned it to him as righteousness. And he said to him, “I am the Lord who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to possess.” But he said, “O Lord God, how am I to know that I shall possess it?” He said to him, “Bring me a heifer three years old, a she-goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.” And he brought him all these, cut them in two, and laid each half over against the other; but he did not cut the birds in two. And when birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, Abram drove them away. As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram; and lo, a dread and great darkness fell upon him. When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. On that day the Lord made a Covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates.”
SECOND READING: Philippians 3:17; 4: 1. Brethren, join in imitating me, and mark those who so live as you have an example in us. For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is the belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. But our commonwealth is in heaven, and from it we await a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will change our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power which enables him even to subject all things to himself. Therefore, my brethren, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved.
GOSPEL: Luke 9:28-36. Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And as he was praying, the appearance of his countenance was altered, and his raiment became dazzling white. And behold, two men talked with him, Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure, which he was to accomplish at Jerusalem. Now Peter and those who were with him were heavy with sleep but kept awake, and they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. And as the men were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is well that we are here; let us make three booths, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah” – not knowing what he said. As he said this, a cloud came and over-shadowed them; and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silence and told no one in those days anything of what they had seen.
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The concept of a personal God had been unknown before Abraham. Before bringing a number of tribes together in a sort of federation, Abraham had this metaphysical intuition (or inspiration, if you like) that the one living God personally cared for life, and was personally involved in it. Today’s story drives home this message: that God and living beings, humans none the less, can somehow be and communicate on the same par. The transcendent God and immanent living creatures meet on a level of equality. Abraham understood that could, and should, be much so amongst all living creatures themselves. Life is common to all, and there lies the Spirit of the Divine.
Paul is desolate by the actions of those who, closing up within themselves and lording over others, destroy the unity and harmony that God willed for all creation. They are, he maintains, ‘enemies of the cross of Christ’, with which he probably meant opponents of all that which unites humans amongst themselves, and leads them to leave in peace and harmony with creation. With tears in his eyes, he pleads with everybody to ‘stand firm in the Lord’, that is, to hold on to the values which Jesus lived by and taught.
The story of Jesus’ transfiguration demonstrates what some of these values are. Jesus had the right to be lord and master of others. Yet, he opted to be poor amongst the poor; a brother on equal standing with all of his fellow humans. As the messenger of God, Jesus had shown time and time again that the type of community which God willed was one based on equality, respect of every single person, and freedom. Through him—‘my Son, my Chosen’—Jesus shuns all types of domination and supremacy of one over the other. It is in this way, and in no other way, that God is personally involved in our life and in our communal living.
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