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." EXPLANATION: God made a Covenant or pact with Abram (name later changed to Abraham) in which he promised to make Abram the father of a great race to which he would give the land of Canaan as their territory. The faith of Abram is praised because he believed God's promise, i.e. that he would have descendants even though his wife Sarah was barren. nunber the stars: God promises Abram that his descendants would be as the stars in the sky : a poetic way of saying very numerous.
to him as righteousness: Abram's acceptance of God's word was a meritorious act of faith for which God rewarded him.
give you this land: God now promises Abram the land of Canaan in which he was already living.
how am I to know: Abram had accepted a promise more difficult of fulfillment, namely to have children with a barren wife. Now he asks for confirmation because the ancient ritual for handing over property demanded a covenant.
Bring me a heifer. . .pigeon: God grants Abram's request and makes a covenant with him, thus sealing the handing over of the land.
cut them in two: The animals offered in sacrifice to seal a pact were split in two and placed apart. The contracting parties walked between the split animals thus signifying that the same fate would befall them, namely they would be divided in two halves, if they did not keep their part of the pact.
a smoking fire pot . . . flaming torch: When darkness had fallen God walked between the divided animals under the symbol of a pillar of fire and a cloud of smoke, as he often appeared later to Abram's descendants. As it was a unilateral pact or covenant on the part of God, Abram did not walk between the sacrifices.
on that day: This was the covenant by which God promised the land of Canaan from one extremity to the other to Abram's descendants. It was only centuries later that the Israelites took possession of this land (see Joshua). APPLICATION: The lesson we are to learn from these verses of the book of Genesis is that we should imitate the faith of Abram and trust in God's word. He promised Abram what seemed the impossible, namely that he would have a numerous progeny even though his wife was barren. Abram trusted God's word and God then goes on to confirm it by promising to give a large territory to those descendants yet to come. This promise is ratified with a solemn pact, as was then the custom, God pledging his word with his life, as it were. Now Abram had a very limited knowledge of God. He had a vague idea that he was God of the whole world for he could dispose of any part of it as he wished, and also that he was interested in the welfare of all men, for he was using Abram as the means through which he would bless all nations (see Gen. 12: 1-3). He knew little more than that. Yet he believed God's promise and continued to believe it even when its fulfillment was postponed for years. How much greater should be our faith in God's word, our trust in his promises? We have seen the fulfillment of his promise to Abram---we have seen the blessing that was sent to all nations. We have that blessing in the New Covenant that Christ made with us. He has not only made us his Chosen People, he has also raised us up, through his Incarnation, to the supernatural status of sons of God. It is not the land of Canaan that is promised to us but the mansions of heaven to be our home for all eternity. But to profit by all this we have our part to play. We must not only accept the faith, and the truths which Christ has revealed to us, but we must live by these truths, and put our faith into daily practice. It is only by doing this that we can receive the promises that he has made to us. There is no sane man alive who does not want eternal happiness. There is no Christian who does not want to rise with Christ because he knows that this is the way to reach it. But not every Christian is willing to follow Christ first to Calvary. Am I following Christ to Calvary in my daily living? It is through the daily carrying of the Christian cross that an eternal crown is earned. What I do in life will determine what kind of resurrection is in store for me.
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 Savior, 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. EXPLANATION: On the Philippian church to which St. Paul is writing this letter see the 2nd Sunday of Advent. In the preceding verses St. Paul has been telling his converts that he has given up all earthly things for the sake of the Christian faith and promise. He admits he is far from perfect but he continues to press forward on the road to heaven.
you . . . example in us: He asks them to follow his example. He knows he is not a saint yet, but he is one in the making. As their Apostle, he was, by his very vocation, their model and exemplar.
many . . . enemies of the cross of Christ: There is real need that they should have a true Christian model to lead them, for there are, to the Apostle's grief, others trying to lead them away from Christ. These enemies of the cross of Christ were probably not only the Judaizers who taught that the precepts of the Old Law were still obligatory on Christians, but also other recent converts who did not live up to their new faith.
in destruction: These people who are given to their own comforts, their bodily pleasures, their earthly treasures will end in ruin.
our commonwealth . . . heaven: Our true fatherland in heaven. This earth is an exile, not our home.
and from it . . . it a Savior: Christ is in heaven and he will come on earth once more to bring all his true followers to their real home.
the Lord Jesus Christ: "Lord" applied to Christ in St. Paul means God.
will change our lowly body: Our resurrected bodies will be different from the earthly bodies we now have. "Spiritual bodies" St. Paul calls them in 1 Cor. 15: 45. But we shall still be ourselves.
to be like his glorious body: Our risen bodies will be glorified bodies like to the risen body of Christ, no longer subject to change or weakness, no longer subject to death or corruption.
stand firm: Persevere in the true faith and hope that be has preached to them. He calls the faithful followers of Christ his joy and his crown, and his beloved and longed-for brothers. APPLICATION: The season of Lent, the six weeks that precede Easter, is a period which long tradition has set apart as a time to prepare for the crowning event of our salvation, the Resurrection of Christ from the dead. Christ came on earth to reveal to men by his teaching, and especially by his life, God's infinite love for the human race. God has shown that love down through the centuries, to the Chosen People especially, but also to others. He showed it by the words sent through the prophets, and by his deeds. But it was in Christ that he gave men the full revelation of his divine love for us. God's plan for man in creation was to raise him up to an intimate union with the divinity. The masterpiece of creation was to become an adopted son of God, a member of the divine family. This was done in the Incarnation. The Son of God became a man, one of us, so that we, through and in him, could become sons of God. Christ, representing us, gave perfect human respect and obedience to God the Father in every action of his life. This perfect homage and obedience led him to his death on the cross : he gave him human life in fulfillment of it. And, because he did, God raised him up again from the dead and seated him at his right hand in heaven. Christ, one of us, has the principal place in heaven next to God the Father---as God, he is equal to the Father. Ever since this plan of God's love for us was carried out, ever since the day of Christ's Resurrection, our home, our permanent abode, is heaven. Our time on earth is only a period of exile. It is a period in which, if we try to imitate Christ, giving true reverence and obedience to God our Father, we can secure for ourselves a place in the eternal home which he has planned for us, and which Christ has won for us. The true Christian should be aware of what God's love has planned for us, and of what humiliations and sufferings this loving plan caused our Savior. How could a person with such an awareness ever forget his supernatural vocation and purpose in life? There are too many who do just this, too many who attach themselves to the fleeting, passing things of this world, and neglect the everlasting possessions which are theirs for the taking. Let us not be among their number. Let us pay heed today to St. Paul's advice to the Philippians and strive to imitate him who was the true lover and follower of Christ. While using thankfully the gifts that God has given us in this life to help us on our journey let us never forget our journey's end, our heritage in heaven, of which Christ our brother has made us co-heirs.
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. EXPLANATION: Luke here describes an incident in Christ's life of which only Peter, James and John were witnesses. It took place on a mountain (Mount Thabor near Nazareth according to tradition). Some days previously Peter had confessed that Christ was the "Messiah of God." Christ had then foretold his passion and death at the hands of his enemies, to be followed by his resurrection. He had encouraged his disciples not to fear sufferings but to carry their cross and so reach their glory as he was about to do. However the disciples could not persuade themselves that he who had shown such wonderful powers could allow himself to be put to death by his enemies. This scene on the mountain therefore, which is called the Transfiguration, was intended by Christ to be an encouragement to his disciples to remain steadfast in the terrible test of faith which his passion and death was soon to be for them.
the appearance . . . altered: He was giving his disciples a glimpse of what his glorified humanity would become after his ascension. "His face shone as the sun," Matthew says. His garments also became a brilliant white.
Moses and Elijah: These two men, in bodily form and "in glory" also, that is, not exactly as they were when on earth but yet recognizable, appeared talking with Christ. Moses represented the Old Law, and Elias the prophets of the old covenant.
spoke of his departure . . . Jerusalem: This was the purpose of the manifestation : to convince the disciples of the necessity of the Passion. They evidently heard the conversation.
Peter and those . . . with him . . . heavy with sleep: Neither Matthew nor Mark mentions this fact. Luke is perhaps signifying that they were not fully conscious of what the conversation meant. They were still prejudiced against the thought that Christ could die.
kept awake . . . saw his glory: The external scene was clear to them : Christ, Moses and Elias radiant in glory.
Peter said to Jesus: This scene was so enthralling that Peter, in his simplicity, wished to prolong it. He suggested that tents should be set up so that they could remain there indefinitely. He was as yet worldly-minded and did not realize that the place for glory was in the future life.
cloud . . . overshadowed them: As was frequently the case in the Old Testament, a cloud was a sign of the presence of God.
were afraid: Afraid because they knew God was here near them.
This is my Son: The voice of God the Father proclaims Christ to be his Son (his "chosen servant," that is, the "Messiah" announced in Is. 42: 1-4. according to many manuscripts) a fact the disciples had not yet understood or accepted. That he was the Messiah chosen and sent by God they already had confessed (9: 21) and could grasp.
listen to him: Moses and Elias the representatives of the Old Law had now left. Jesus is alone and in his normal appearance, but God tells them he is to be listened to and obeyed. In other words, he takes the place of the teachers of old and has God's authority behind him.
kept silence . . . had seen: The scene was something they did not then understand, but later, after the Resurrection and the Descent of the Holy Spirit, they understood and told their followers all about it. APPLICATION: It was out of the abundance of his divine love that God gave a glimpse of the future glory of Christ in his risen humanity to the three disciples on that memorable occasion. And with Christ he showed two others of his faithful servants also in glory. He understood the human weakness of the disciples, and foresaw the shock to their faith which the sad scenes of the passion and crucifixion of their beloved Master would be some weeks later. So, to strengthen and forearm them for that sad trial, he gave them a glimpse of the future glory which was to be theirs, too, if they persevered. It is for this same reason that this all-important event in the life of Christ and of his Apostles has been preserved for us in the Gospels and is put before us today. Like the Apostles, we, too, believe firmly in God. We, too, are convinced that Christ was sent by God to bring us to heaven. We now have much more convincing proof that Christ was not only the Messiah, an envoy of God, but the very Son of God---something the Apostles did not then understand. But we are still very much like them in our human weakness, and in our half-hearted acceptance of God's purpose for and promises to us. The Apostles had to face the awful test to their faith and trust in God, which the passion and crucifixion of Christ was for them. We now accept with gratitude and realize that Christ "had to suffer and thus enter into his glory." We even understand that the very purpose of Christ's passion was that, in spite of our mortality and weakness, we also might enter into eternal glory through his suffering, on condition that we remain true to our faith. In our moments of cool, calm reasoning we can see clearly how good God has been to us, how wonderful his love which has arranged for us an eternity of happiness, the perfect fulfillment of every rational human desire. We can also see how little God asks of us during our few short years here, in return for the everlasting happy home he has prepared for us. But unfortunately we have many moments in life in which cool, calm reasoning does not prevail. We have moments when our vices and not our virtues take charge, moments when we are prepared to sell our eternal heritage in exchange for a mess of earthly pottage. Some of us may already have bartered our heavenly home for some temporal gain or pleasure---but while there is life there is hope. We can still put things right with God. "Lord, it is good for us to be here," it is wonderful to be adopted sons of God on the road back to our Father. It is wonderful to be assured that in death this body of ours with its pains and aches, its attraction to earthly things and worse still its propensity to sin, will give place to a glorified body. This glorified body will be free from all pain and corruption and will possess all the human spiritual gifts of intelligence and will to so much greater a degree as will enable us to appreciate and enjoy the eternal happiness in store for us.-c116 Click to return to our Home page
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