Mountaintop Experiences

     “After six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves. And He was transfigured before them, and His clothes became dazzling white, such as no fuller on earth could bleach them. Then Elijah appeared to them along with Moses, and they were conversing with Jesus. Then Peter said to Jesus in reply, “Rabbi, it is good that we are here! Let us make three tents: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah” (Mk. 9 vs. 2-5).


     Like Peter, James and John, we too have moments when the glory of the Lord shines down upon us. Those special, precious moments, when God reveals Himself, as well as the great love He has for us. These experiences are profound and cannot be denied. They are a knowing that pierces deep within our hearts. They are special and sacred, and like Moses, we realize that we are standing on Holy Ground.


     Like St. Peter, we too want to build a tent, and stay there soaking and basking in God’s love. We wonder why life cannot always be this good, and wish for the power to bottle it so we can drink deeply of those feelings when we are empty.

     Those mountaintop experiences with God are not a commonplace occurrence. God grants them to us when He knows we are in need of them. For the three apostles, it was a gift to strengthen them for Christ’s upcoming passion and death. They needed to see the glory of Jesus, as St. Leo the Great has proclaimed, to banish, from the disciples souls, the scandal of the Cross.

     Living our days with the mundane, the ups and downs, the joys and struggles, the peaks and valleys, can be challenging, if we do not hold and cherish those moments when the glory of the Lord was revealed to us. It is but a taste of what we will experience when we reach our final destination of heaven. We must recall these touches of God when we find life burdensome. Relish them and allow them to penetrate our inmost being. We must also remember that although those transfiguration times are infrequent, Christ is always with us.

     “Suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone but Jesus alone with them” (Mk. 9 vs. 8).

     When we are feeling alone and do not experience the presence of Christ, revisiting our mountaintop experiences will help us to look around and see Jesus with us. Knowing He is walking with us encourages us to continue.

     The three apostles now strengthened by His love for them, descended with Jesus, down the mountain. They returned to ordinary time, with all life’s daily happenings. Although the apostles had been touched deeply, they were not totally transformed. They would still misunderstand Christ's teachings, make mistakes, and at times, be filled with fear and disbelief. But they were also filled with the tremendous knowledge of God’s love and concern for them. They were touched by the light of Christ and would carry that light with them to a world full of darkness. It was a light that they could behold when all other lights seemed to be extinguished. We too have the power through Christ to do the same!

     “You will do well to be attentive to it, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts” (2 Pt. 19b).