The Transfiguration of Paul?

Saint Paul by Pompeo Batoni

 

Good Saturday morning, good citizens of the cosmos. We are in a time of transition – not only in our own chaotic world but on the church’s calendar. The last Sunday in the season after The Epiphany was traditionally known as Quinquagesima (from the Latin for ‘fifty’) Sunday, being the last Sunday before Lent begins and 50days before Easter –if you count Easter itself. 

 

It had been traditional to begin fasting on “Septuagesima” – or 70 days before Easter – and to put away the Alleluias. However, in almost all of Western Christianity, fasting begins on Ash Wednesday and the Alleluias are put away or “buried” on the Last Sunday after The Epiphany.

Tomorrow, we will finish up the season after The Epiphany and this time of transition into the Season of Lent with the story of the Transfiguration of Jesus. It’s a wonderful story, reflecting the transfiguration of Moses on Mt. Sinai which we will also hear on Sunday.

It's a significant story because, in the days of Jesus, many thought of Elijah as an important “candidate” from their Holy Scriptures (what Christians often refer to as the “Old Testament”) to replace Moses. It is important, in Luke’s telling, that Elijah and Moses stand with Jesus in the vision and that the voice of God says, “This is my Son, my chosen. Listen to him.”

I should also note that this passage is so important that it is thought by many scholars to be an important precursor to what Muslims believe was the single most important event of Muhammad’s life, the Mi’raj (“night vision”. 

Ramadan Mubarak to all my Muslim friends who observe! May this holy month bring you peace, prosperity and endless blessings. May Allah accept your prayers and forgive your sins. Ramadan Kareem!

The Mi‘raj – the moment when Muhammad is purified in his sleep begins the sequence when he is then transported in a single night from Mecca to Jerusalem by Jibril (Gabriel) a winged mythical creature.  From Jerusalem, where the Dome of the Rock now stands, he is accompanied by Gabriel (Jibrīl) to heaven, ascending possibly by ladder or staircase (an allusion to Jacob?). This story is claimed by several prominent Christian and Muslim scholars as having been inspired by the story of the transfiguration of Moses and Jesus.

Muhammad's Night Journey

Which is fine. I mean, clearly the story of the transfiguration of Jesus was inspired by the story of the transfiguration of Moses – right down to the change in the appearance of their faces.

I suppose it is important, in the liturgical cycle, to have Jesus clearly transfigured and identified as the Son of God before we begin our journey into the wilderness of Lent, taking us to the glory of the Resurrection on Easter Day.

 

None of that concerns me. It’s tidy and neat and tidy and neat always bothers me about the “systematic” nature of this particular theology.  Logic and order and tidiness have its place, I suppose, in the faith journey. That’s important to the very souls of some.

Me? I like my religion disorganized, tending ever so slightly to the chaotic which, I think, acknowledges the presence of the sacred in our lives of faith in the midst of that which cannot be controlled and contained, which is challenging and scary and unpredictable.

Personally? I think that makes our stories part of the ever unfolding story of God’s unconditional and eternal love for all of God’s creatures and creation, as it was in the beginning when the Spirit was sent to brood over the chaos and call new creations into being.

Which is precisely why I have a problem – Big. Huge. – with the selection of the Epistle for Transfiguration Sunday.

The passage chosen by the brilliant, logical minds of the lectionary wizards is from 2 Corinthians 3:12-4:2. Listen to the first few sentences.

“Since, then, we have such a hope, we act with great boldness, not like Moses, who put a veil over his face to keep the people of Israel from gazing at the end of the glory that was being set aside. But their minds were hardened. Indeed, to this very day, when they hear the reading of the old covenant, that same veil is still there, since only in Christ is it set aside. Indeed, to this very day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their minds; but when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed.”

Oy, gevault! The violence done to our Jewish sisters, brothers and siblings simply takes my breath away. I mean, it is beyond the kind of ‘cringy’ feeling I get when I hear John’s gospel blaming “the Jews” for the crucifixion of Jesus. We all know that this was a state execution which was supported by the Religious Leaders – not “all the Jews” – for their own purposes.

 

“Not like Moses”??? The one who inspired the story not only of Jesus but of Muhammad?? Moses??? Who apparently intentionally put the veil over his face to “keep the people of Israel” from being able to see the eventual glory of Jesus? The “people of Israel” whose “minds were hardened – indeed, to this very day?” To this very day?? “Christ is set aside”??? And, only “when one turns to the Lord (Jesus), the veil is removed”????

Seriously??? 

Paul Preaching on the Ruins Giovanni Paolo Pannini

What is a preacher to do? I mean, the ending of this passage is comforting but this particular pericope of scripture is way too loaded to have to unpack in even a 15 minute sermon.

I think it is best handled not in a sermon but in a Bible Study or an Adult Forum or in a seminary or EFM class on the writings of Paul in general and the context of this pericope in particular. 

 

My impulse is to skip to verse 17 where the beautiful, comforting part begins and to focus on how we are transformed by moments of encountering God. To read that whole passage while ignoring the tough parts of this text, especially in these days of rising Christian Nationalism and its attendant anti-Semitism, is not only dangerous, it is akin to pastoral malpractice.

Indeed, if I were still rector, my bishop and I would be having a serious conversation about eliminating that first pericope entirely and not reading it in church at all. But, I’m not still a rector and I won’t be having that conversation with the bishop here.

So, I’m taking this question to some of the smartest, compassionate, loving people I know. You. What say you, dear ones who are faithful readers of my Blog?

Many of you have taken EFM. Many of you have studied scripture in general and St. Paul in particular. We know that the “old covenant” or “Old Testament” has not been revoked or superseded. God’s word is everlasting and God’s promise can be trusted.

We understand that that Paul’s rhetoric in this passage is part of a debate around whether Gentile converts to Christianity needed to observe Torah. It’s important to be clear that Paul’s contrast of freedom or grace with the law does not mean the denigration of Jewish Torah observance.

We understand that Paul is speaking to Gentiles new to the biblical faith. In Corinth - known then as "Sin City". A place where the Jews were a tiny part of the population holding on by their fingernails against the prevailing pressures of the presence of and devotion of Greek gods on the one hand and pagan worship on the other. And then, there was the Romans and their God, which carried additional political weight and consequences.

And, here comes Paul, challenging not only centuries of Greek myth, pagan gods, and Roman rule, but also the very foundations of Torah with the teachings of this new Rabbi.

I have come to understand and develop a greater appreciation of the complexities of Paul, as a devout, practicing Jew who was Roman citizen, preaching the new biblical faith of a radical Rabbi who had been crucified for his teachings.

Artist Unknown (taken from RC source)

Indeed, after my trip to Greece and after walking in the footsteps of Paul, I have come to understand that Paul was proud of his own Jewishness, and responded pragmatically to problem situations but continued to observe the Torah himself.

That’s a whole lot to include in a 15 or even 20 minute (God forbid!) sermon. Too much, I think. And yet, given the perilous times in which we live, the responsibility to challenge the rising waves of anti-Semitism and Christian Nationalism has never been greater. 

 

If this passage is going to continue to be read in church today, how do we help the congregation relate to Jewish people and Judaism today?

How do we preach the transfiguration of Paul without skipping the hard parts? How do we preach a transformation which was nowhere near as dramatic as that which happened to Moses or Jesus or Muhammad, and yet remains an important model for how we, too, are transformed by moments of encountering God?

I hope something good happens to you today. 

Bom dia.