Podcast: The Transfiguration of the Lord

Hi and welcome to the Modern Psalmist Podcast. I’m Rebecca De La Torre.

This weekend we celebrate the Transfiguration of the Lord. The transfiguration refers to the time when Jesus took Peter, James, and John up a high mountain and he was transfigured before them.

All of the readings today begin to give us a picture of Jesus in his magnificence.

In the gospel reading from Matthew chapter 17, verses 2 & 3 we read:

“his face shone like the sun
and his clothes became white as light.
And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them,
conversing with him.”

and in verse 5:

“a bright cloud cast a shadow over them,
then from the cloud came a voice that said,
“This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased;
listen to him.””

Peter, James, and John received a special gift that day – seeing Jesus in a glorified form. Of course this gift was intended to bless others – to encourage us in our faith. And Peter shares this account in his letter, which is our second reading for today.

From 1 Peter, chapter 1, he says:

“we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty.
For he received honor and glory from God the Father
when that unique declaration came to him from the majestic glory,
“This is my Son, my beloved, with whom I am well pleased.”
We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven
while we were with him on the holy mountain.”

The prophet Daniel, who is the author of our first reading for today, was also witness to Jesus’ glory via his vision recounted in the book of Daniel chapter 7. In verses 13 & 14, he shares that:

“I saw One like a Son of man coming,
on the clouds of heaven;
When he reached the Ancient One
and was presented before him,
The one like a Son of man received dominion, glory, and kingship;
all peoples, nations, and languages serve him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion
that shall not be taken away,
his kingship shall not be destroyed.”

As I said before, all of these readings begin to give us a picture of Jesus in his magnificence and glory.

The psalm for today is from chapter 97 and establishes the Lord as the divine ruler of all. The response that we sing at mass is a combination of verse 1 and verse 9:

“The Lord is king, the Most High over all the earth.”

Before I share my interpretation of the responsorial psalm, I want to take a moment to read the entire psalm 97.

Try to listen to the words of this psalm and truly imagine how great God must be for all these things to be true of him.

Psalm 97:

“The LORD is king; let the earth rejoice;
let the many islands be glad.
Cloud and darkness surround him;
justice and right are the foundation of his throne.

Fire goes before him,
consuming his foes on every side.
His lightning illumines the world;
the earth sees and trembles.

The mountains melt like wax before the LORD,
before the Lord of all the earth.
The heavens proclaim his justice;
all peoples see his glory.

All who serve idols are put to shame,
who glory in worthless things;
all gods* bow down before him.

Zion hears and is glad,
and the daughters of Judah rejoice
because of your judgments, O LORD.

For you, LORD, are the Most High over all the earth,
exalted far above all gods.

You who love the LORD, hate evil,
he protects the souls of the faithful,
rescues them from the hand of the wicked.

Light dawns for the just,
and gladness for the honest of heart.

Rejoice in the LORD, you just,
and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.”

The feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord serves to turn our thoughts to God and his great glory.

And isn’t that how we are supposed to begin our prayers? When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them *how* to pray, he gave us the Lord’s Prayer, that begins with

“Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come;
thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

This prayer doesn’t start with a list of needs. It starts by praising God and calling his name “hallowed” which means holy, revered and honored.

The psalm for today helps us to put our focus on who God is.

Let us all rejoice in his glorious name.