The story of the Transfiguration

A summit of light

The Transfiguration is an event reported in the three Synoptic Gospels (Matthew 17, Mark 9, Luke 9). Jesus takes Peter, James and John with him and leads them away to a high mountain. There, before their eyes, he is transfigured: his face shines like the sun, his clothes become white as light. Moses and Elijah appear, talking with him.

The apostles are amazed, dazzled, and frightened. Peter cries out:

"Lord, it is good that we are here!"

But already a luminous cloud envelops them, and a voice is heard:

"This is my beloved Son, in whom I delight: listen to him!"

Then everything returns to the way it was before. Jesus touches his disciples, reassures them, and asks them not to speak of this vision until after his resurrection.

A foretaste of glory

The Transfiguration is not just another miracle. It is a flash of divinity in Christ's humanity, an unveiling of his true nature. Jesus, true man, is also true God, and here he reveals his glory to his disciples to strengthen their faith before the ordeal of the cross.

This event in fact takes place shortly after the announcement of his Passion: Jesus prepares his apostles to go through the darkness, giving them the light of his divinity as support and hope.

At the same time, the presence of Moses (the Law) and Elijah (the Prophets) shows that the whole of the Old Testament converges on Christ. He is the fulfilment of the Scriptures, the one God asks us to listen to.

An ancient and radiant feast

The liturgical feast of the Transfiguration has been celebrated since the first centuries in the East, particularly in the Byzantine Church, where it is one of the great solemnities. It spread to the West later, and Pope Calixtus III extended it to the entire Latin Church in 1457, in thanksgiving for a Christian victory against the Turks.

Celebrated on 6 August, this feast invites us to contemplate the glorious face of Christ, to raise our eyes to Heaven, to remember that our faith is not a cross without light, but a path to the glory of God.

It is also a call to inner transformation: Christ calls us, too, to be transfigured by his light. Prayer, contemplation, faithfulness in trial, gradually make us like him.

A feast of light and hope

The Transfiguration is an answer to our doubts, our fatigue, our discouragement. It shows us that behind the cross lies glory, and that the light of the Risen One is already with us today.

It is also a divine pedagogy: Jesus does not spare the cross, but he shows us that the goal is the resurrection. Through it, God tells us:

"Do not stop at appearances. This is what you will become in me. This is my light, my beauty, my peace."