Just a couple days ago we spent the morning on Mount Tabor. This mountain is almost within sight of Nazareth, which was the base for our first venture into Galilee. That morning we came down out of Nazareth, which is up on a ridge above the Jezreel valley, one of the most fertile places in the whole region. We went briefly to Nain, where Jesus raised the widow's only son from the dead. From there we could look north across the valley and see the perfectly symmetrical shape of Mount Tabor.
"After six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves." Mt 17.1
We drove part way up, then we changed into smaller microbuses because the road was too narrow for our tour bus. On top we walked into the compound around the Church of the Transfiguration! It was a bright sunny crisp morning, the Church was magnificent, and we had time! After one of the brothers gave a reflection and our guide explained a bit, we had a whole hour just to pray before Mass in the church. I could have spent a whole week!
I have a confession to make regarding the Transfiguration. As the rosary has become part of my life, starting in high school, this was always one of the mysteries that I found dry. I am always moved by the Annunciation... which Mike so eloquently describes in the previous post. How to say Yes so perfectly to God, especially as I've discerned and am now preparing for the priesthood, this resonates deeply. And so on with many of the other mysteries. But this one, when John Paul II offered the Church the Luminous mysteries, was a challenge. After some time, I settled on the expedient of always praying for my Mormon friends, as I had the impression that this event is especially important to them in their very different understanding of Christ. But I didn't often find inspiration or insight in it.
Then, this fall, I was blessed to sit in on Fr. Joseph Henchy, C.S.S. as he taught a course on the Transfiguration. This blessed 10 weeks really began to open up the mystery for me... how it is connected to the Baptism in the Jordan, how it prepared the Apostles for the struggles that lay ahead, how Moses representing the law and Elijah the prophets brought revelation all together with Christ, it's fullness and perfection. And Peter's bumbling... "Lord, let's set up tents and stay here!" It is always encouraging to see how the Lord worked through him in spite of his frequent misunderstanding... maybe He can do something even with me!As I walked around and prayed near the church, sitting in the sun and looking out over the valley below, I shared some of the sense of joy and wonder that the Apostles must have felt (mixed in with fear and awe in their case). Inside the church I went to confession, availing myself of the outpouring of grace. I gazed upon the striking mosaics of the Transfiguration. I thought a little about how the Gospel was being opened up bit by bit in my life. Truly, with Peter I could say, "Lord, it is good that we are here."
God Bless,
Ben
P.S. Make sure you check out the pictures at Picasa... there's a bunch of them up now, with captions!
2 comments:
Hi Ben, this is Mike- I didn't want to be redundant and write a second post about Mt. Tabor, but it's one of my favorite places here (or anywhere) so I thought I'd leave some of my thoughts here on the 'comments' page. The first time I came to the Holy Land was on a pilgrimage with my dad a couple years ago- here's what I wrote to my friends about my first impression of Mt. Tabor:
“Mount Tabor- unexpected highlight- (Judges 4-5; Deborah judges from Tabor) a lone mountain right in the middle of them all- anyone can see it’s a Holy Place, as soon as you see it you know. Rather a far walk from the Sea of Galilee! They must have woken up early (Peter and John and Jesus, this is where the transfiguration took place. Mt. 17. Was James there too? He was)- we took wildly careening taxis instead. From the roof of a monastery on top you can see Endor, where Saul consulted the witch the night before he died.
I had a moment’s peace when I broke away and went down the trail. There was a green hillside where all the trees were leaning as though dazed and listening. A bull was not far away, sitting in the shade.
So unlike what I preconceived! It’s so GREEN! And flowers all over.”
When I broke away from the two group two years ago and ventured down the hillside I promised myself, that if I ever came back I would explore those green woods with the leaning trees. With our hour of freedom (which Ben spent praying and going to confession) I ran down the hill to discover what I could- there were some low caves there and wild crocuses and a rocky path which I walked down for five minutes before I realized it was the top of an ancient wall- and an arch standing in the middle of some scraggly apple trees (well, they looked like apple trees anyway). There were all kinds of gullies and groves- it’s the sort of place where I would’ve built a fort when I was eleven. I sat and thought ‘it really is good that we’re here’. It’s just the sort of place where one doesn’t want to leave (so I sympathize with Peter). I even came across an abandoned camp site. And after walking up that mountain, no wonder the apostles fell asleep! Ben and I and a few others hiked straight down the mountain.
Mount Tabor is the sort of place you can visit once, and ever afterwards think about it with as much fondness as you think about home.
Dear Ben, Sounds like an interesting and spiritually rewarding experience you are on. Fr. Joe at American Martyrs has encouraged us to check this out, and I am glad I did. Good stuff. Merry Christmas to you and your fellow travelers. Andy Wiltzius-Kingsford.
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