A Message from Pastor Kaji
Dear Church:
This Sunday we arrive at Transfiguration Sunday, the radiant turning point at the close of Epiphany. All season long we have been training our sight for revelation. Through the Anna Fast, through prayer, through restraint and intention, we have been clearing inner space so that when glory flashes, we are ready to behold.
Transfiguration is one of the boldest revelation moments in all of scripture. Jesus takes Peter, James, and John up the mountain six days after telling them that his suffering and death lie ahead in Jerusalem. The timing matters. Notice how Jesus prepares them. Notice how they respond.
After worship this Sunday, we will host listening tables with leadership. These are simple, sacred, small group spaces to hear what you are holding sacred in this season of our church’s life. Revelation calls for response, and listening is one of our holiest responses. I know you’ll be ready.
Please plan to join us for Ash Wednesday worship at 6 pm in the sanctuary, in person. I’m so inspired by the careful preparation for proclamation, confession and healing that our leaders have put into the service. Come get your ashes and your reminder of God’s incredible grace.
Can’t wait to see you for all of this rich worship and sharing!
Pax Christi,
Pastor Kaji
Study Guide: Transfiguration
The word “transfiguration” refers to a visible change in form that reveals inner reality. In the Gospel accounts, Jesus’ hidden glory becomes perceptible to human eyes. The Greek verb used in Matthew 17 is “metamorphōthē,” the same root that gives us the word metamorphosis. It signals a change of appearance that discloses true nature.
Bible Nerdy Facts
The Transfiguration appears in the Synoptic Gospels: Matthew 17:1–8, Mark 9:2–8, and Luke 9:28–36. Each account includes the shining face or clothing, the appearance of Moses and Elijah, the overshadowing cloud, and the divine voice.
The event occurs shortly after Peter’s confession that Jesus is the Messiah and Jesus’ first prediction of his suffering and death. Revelation and cost are linked in the narrative sequence.
Moses and Elijah represent the Law and the Prophets. Their presence signals continuity between Jesus and Israel’s sacred story.
The mountain setting echoes earlier mountain revelations in scripture, including Moses on Sinai. Mountains function as meeting places between heaven and earth in biblical literature.
In Christian tradition, Transfiguration Sunday closes the Epiphany season and turns the church’s gaze toward Lent. It stands as a threshold moment between revelation and the journey toward the cross.
Eastern Christian theology gives the Transfiguration major emphasis, often describing it as a revelation of divine light and a preview of resurrected glory.
Questions for reflection and journaling
- Where have you caught a glimpse of holy clarity in this Epiphany season?
- When you experience something sacred or luminous, do you try to contain it, explain it, or control it, like Peter did? What might an alternative be?
- What do you sense Jesus is asking you to listen to right now?
SCRIPTURE
Matthew 17:1-9
Six days [after Jesus told his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and biblical scholars, and be killed], Jesus took with him Peter and James and John his brother and brought them up a high mountain, by themselves. 2 And he was transfigured in front of them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light. 3 Then, look! Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with him. 4 Peter responded saying to Jesus, “Teacher, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will pitch three tents here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 5 He was still speaking when look! A cloud full of light overshadowed them! And then . . . ! A voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” 6 When the disciples heard this, they fell upon the ground and were very much afraid. 7 Then Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Get up and do not be afraid.” 8 They looked up and they saw no one except Jesus himself alone.
Gafney, Wilda . A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church Year A (p. 147). (Function). Kindle Edition.