In Mathew 5:17, Jesus says, “Think not that I have come to abolish the Law and the Prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfil them.” The Law and the Prophets are the two main aspects of the Old Covenant, and Moses represents the Law, while Elijah represents the Prophets.
The Church celebrates the Feast of the Transfiguration each year on August 6.
This event is alluded to in 2 Peter1:16-18, which records that, “We were eye witnesses of his majesty” and “We were with him on the Holy mountain.”
The Transfiguration revealed Christ’s glory prior to the crucifixion, and it anticipated H is Resurection and Ascension.
“All three Synoptic Gospels highlight the Transfiguration (Mathew 17:1-8, Mark 9:2-8, and Luke 9:28-36).”
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, “Christ’s Transfiguration aims at strengthening the apostles’ faith in anticipation of his Passion: the ascent
on to the ‘high mountain’ prepares for the ascent to Calvary. Christ, Head of the Church, manifests what his Body contains and radiates in the sacraments: “the Hope of Glory.” (CCC 568).”
The presence of Moses and Elijah during the Transfiguration suggests Jesus’s fulfilment of both, the Law (Moses) and the Prophets (Elijah). St. Thomas Aquinas said, “The whole Trinity appeared: The Father 6 PORMOLL, AUGUST 2025 in the voice; the Son in the man; the Spirit in the shining cloud.”
According to St. Thomas Aquinas, the Transfiguration occurred because the divine glory which was Christ’s was allowed for a moment to shine through His human body. He did this so that they could taste for a short time the contemplation of eternal joy, in view of the persecutions they would suffer, preparing them for the difficult path ahead, including Jesus’s suffering and death.”
The Transfiguration of Jesus is one of the key events in Jesus’ life. He took his three apostles – Peter, James and John – up to a high mountain to pray. As they were praying, His appearance changed, and His clothes became “dazzling white.” At that point, Moses and Elijah appeared and spoke to the Lord about His upcoming death. A cloud overshadowed the group, and the Father’s voice came from the cloud saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him.” Here the Lord is basically telling them to lay aside their ideas and expectations and listen to Jesus. Their understanding of the Law and the Prophets needs to come through Jesus instead of interpreting Jesus
through their understanding of the Law and Prophets. This is a word that we need to take seriously, too.
As simple as it may sound, what we can learn from the Transfiguration is this: Christian community that pleases the Father and honours His word is all about Jesus – who He is, what He has done, and what matters. The Transfiguration on the mountain is considered a meeting point between the temporal world and the eternal, with Jesus as the bridge between Heaven and Earth. The Transfiguration not only offers us a glimpse of Jesus in all his glory, it also offers each of us a foretaste of what God promises each of us in the fullness of His kingdom.
The more we contemplate the glory of Jesus, the more we can embrace the cross of suffering, we endure, in our daily lives. May God help us to look at the glory of Jesus until we can deeply accept the way of the Cross. God is light, and Jesus wishes to give His closest friends the experience of this light which dwells within Him.
Sherida D’Souza