Fr. John Kennedy, SJ
Jesus climbed the mountain with his closest friends—Peter, James, and John. This was no ordinary journey. It was a sacred ascent for each one of them. Jesus knew what awaited him in Jerusalem: betrayal, rejection, the cross, and the glory— a final blow against sin and death.
The disciples, drowsy at first, awoke to a vision beyond comprehension, like Adam at Eve’s creation and Abraham at the moment of his pact with God. In today’s first reading, God asked Moses to look up at the sky. He told him that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the sky. In the case of Jesus, however, it was as if the stars themselves had gathered to shine upon the Son, illuminating Him with a radiance that could only be divine. The disciples experienced the glory of God.
Peter, ever impulsive, was already profoundly enamoured with Jesus and did not mind labouring with joy to put up tents, eager to bask in the glow of the divine presence. Being a fisherman, he saw a great catch—why not cast the net and seize it? Our true nature never changes, not even in moments of glory. Jesus knew the impulsive love of Peter. Lovers are known to make grand promises and set out to do impractical things for the sake of their beloved. In the process, they grow to transform themselves into the love of the beloved, to get the beloved into the “net” of their love. Peter aspired to do the same. Peter wanted to build only three tents but did not mention where he and his companions would dwell. Lovers linger with their beloved. To live in Jesus’ tent is far more glorious than to dwell in our own.
Jesus is the tent of our true freedom. He came for this very purpose, but at a great cost. Freedom is never free. God the Father declares, “This is my beloved Son; listen to Him.” Listening and obeying are intertwined here. On a mountain, Jesus will be lifted high up on a tree so that we may behold His glory, which will be ours when we climb on the mountains of our minds and hearts to experience His radiance.
God’s glory is like light—it pours itself out without restraint, without borders, limitless as His love. His love flows toward us unceasingly, like water seeking its course, like life simply living, as natural as breathing effortlessly. But nothing comes without a price, and God’s son paid the price so that we could live fully.
As Paul says, our minds may set on earthly things, but our citizenship is in heaven. Like the lotus, whose roots may be tangled in mud and dirt, nothing can stop it from blooming. The scent of a flower attracts honeybees from afar. In the same way, the fragrance of our heartfelt devotion draws God closer to us.
We are called to be citizens of heaven, vessels of His unbounded love, receptors of His radiant light, and builders of His tent on earth.
Fr. John S. Kennedy is a Jesuit of the Darjeeling Province and is a lecturer in North Bengal St. Xavier's College. He received his Licentiate in Sacred Theology (STL) in Ignatian Spirituality from Santa Clara University, USA. He has a master's degree in Sociology and Human Rights, and a master of science in Counselling Psychology. He is a retreat director and a student counsellor.
