Minister of the Uniting Church in Australia and lecturer in liturgy and theology at United Theological College, Sydney, in the synod of New South Wales.

In the midst of drought and flood, of devastating bush-fire and debilitating heat, we pray... We pray for rain. We pray for no rain. We pray for change. We pray for relief.

In the midst of global warming and economic turmoil, of economic disparity and environmental degradation, we pray... We pray for sense. We pray for action. We pray for change. We pray for relief.

In the midst of uncertainty and powerlessness, of desperation and disbelief, we pray... We pray for wisdom. We pray for knowledge. We pray for comfort. We pray for relief.

We pray for things to be different, and we pray for a sign that can help us understand, make us turn around, give us clear direction, show us the path...

We pray for light, for illumination, for insight, for awareness, for belief...

And we wait... for a vision, a proclamation, an epiphany, a revelation... anything that would prove to be a sign that our journey is complete, that we might celebrate the fullness of life.

"Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on to the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white." (Lk 9.28-29).

And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed (v.29)... a transfiguration, a metamorphosis, a change of shape and form and colour and light, a revelation of something beyond the usual...

There is no appropriate response to this display. What can you do or say when caught up in the moment except... "Aaaah!" - like the crowds watching a spectacular fireworks display! For when the glory of God is made so apparent, so present, so audible, a response seems hardly possible.

Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
in light inaccessible hid from our eyes...¹

Hang on a minute! Doesn't light illuminate? Doesn't light reveal? Doesn't light show forth? Doesn't light help us to read the signs of the times?

Set in a place of wonder and awe, gob-smacked, if you like - mouth hanging open, hands at a loss to know what to do, head without a thought about what to think, or say or how to act, Peter tries to read the sign. His response is imaginative, traditional even, but not quite in touch with the moment. For the moment is not quite in touch with the mission of Jesus, it is merely a revelation... a revelation that conceals as well as shows. The disciples are at a loss...

For this light hides. This light covers. This light obscures...

Luke recounts a magnificent revelation, complete with light and sound, colour and movement. But this light spectacular dazzles its audience, so that, dazed, they think it's the end of the show.

"This is my Son, my Chosen, listen to him!" (v.35). A verbal revelation, a statement of claim and of purpose, surely a text that is worth the reading...

"But the light is too bright for Peter to see or read by...; he might as well be reading in the dark."²

In affirming the mission of Jesus, the light of the transfiguration obscures the direction of that mission... at least to those who are placed in the story - to Peter who is ready to establish dwelling-places and to Peter's companions "weighed down by sleep" (v.32).

In the sequence of the gospel narrative, Jesus has been recounting a journey still ahead, still in progress, but not in the realm of this place of beyond... a journey of suffering and of death before resurrection... a journey which still has some distance to go.

Like chasers of an eclipse then, we need to position ourselves carefully, ensure that we have good eye protection (a veil may be appropriate) and hope that in the loss of direct vision, we may find illumination and insight - the big picture, if you like.

To readers with hindsight, away from the glare, out of the immediate harshness of that penetrating light, awake and attentive, the vision of the wider story may become apparent. And our reading may be enhanced...

For refracted between epiphanies and light-shows, the mission of Jesus in the Gospel of Luke happens outside the spectacular displays that leave disciples completely at a loss. Although such displays put readers in touch with the ultimate significance of Jesus' journey: the culmination of history, the fulfilment of life.

The story of the transfiguration allows gospel readers/hearers to catch a glimpse, an inkling, an echo of the depth of what's happening in the rest of the story. It's a marker, a sign, an alarm that you'd better be paying attention, because this story is bigger than it seems (and a revelation or two helps to keep the reader in touch with the greater insight of God).

Something powerful is going on. Jesus is found in the company of the greats: Moses and Elijah - prophets who faced God and lived, and perhaps more significantly, prophets who faced the people on behalf of God and felt their wrath; prophets who experienced the light, heard the voice, became lost in the cacophony...; and prophets whose mission lay in the mundane work of their communities and the journey of community life - always a revelation in itself.

Sandwiched between words about death and life, the transfiguration assures the reader that what they are reading can be trusted. "This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!" (v.35). Sandwiched between readings about life and death, the transfiguration alerts the hearer to the continuing journey of Jesus as the fulfilment of life.

In the year 2000, Australians marched for reconciliation between indigenous and non-indigenous people. We turned out in our hundreds of thousands, in our millions. We stood in heat, waited for hours. We walked, pushed strollers, carried banners. These were the largest demonstrations in Australian history.

I remember watching the faces of prominent Aboriginal activists as they watched the waves of marchers crossing William Jolly Bridge in Brisbane. It was almost too much to believe, that such numbers of people would turn out for this cause after all their years of struggle and heartache.

It was a sign of something powerful, a revelation, an epiphany, but not reconciliation in and of itself. We've still a long way to go...

And that long way is the long way... the hard way, the difficult way, the tough way... the way of everyday discipleship here and now.

Whether it's reconciliation, or economic justice, or environmental protection, or compassion for refugees, or global peace, we are on a journey. This journey is hard, this journey is difficult, this journey is tough...

...but this journey is the stuff of life in all its fullness.

This journey is of ultimate significance. This journey is about the culmination of history. And the glimpses of the glory found in moments of transfiguration provide encouragement for faithful disciples, even as they obscure the glory of the continuing journey of God.

Luke brings us into an encounter with an epiphany, a revelation. This revelation confirms the story, rather than bringing it to completion. Jesus is on a journey. The direction is Jerusalem. In the company of great leaders of the people who journeyed with the people in the name of God during difficult times, Jesus is transfigured. The reader catches a glimpse of the ultimate significance of the journey and, assured of hope, ploughs ahead with Jesus towards Jerusalem.

The light may be splendid, and the revelation disarming, but the journey remains ahead. This place is not yet the place to stop.

In the midst of drought and flood, of devastating bush-fire and debilitating heat, we pray... We pray for rain. We pray for no rain. We pray for change. We pray for relief. And we continue the journey...

In the midst of global warming and economic turmoil, of economic disparity and environmental degradation, we pray... We pray for sense. We pray for action. We pray for change. We pray for relief. And we continue the journey...

In the midst of uncertainty and powerlessness, of desperation and disbelief, we pray... We pray for wisdom. We pray for knowledge. We pray for comfort. We pray for relief. And we continue the journey...

We pray for things to be different, and we pray for a sign that can help us to understand, make us turn around, give us clear direction, show us the path... And we continue the journey...

For we have received a light, an illumination, an insight, an awareness, renewed belief... a vision, a proclamation, an epiphany, a revelation...

...that this journey, via Jerusalem, is a journey towards the fullness of life.