Transfiguration

Transfiguration always provides lovely readings, but this year, we heard the story of Moses' veiled face after seeing the glory of God.  But the lectionary never gives us the story of Moses actually seeing the glory of God (except as a semi-continuous option, which you will never catch me, or anyone else who believes that Jesus is the center of Scripture, using).  That passage would be lovely to hear on Transfiguration or during Holy Week or even on Easter itself.  To know that even Moses is only granted to see God's backside means something terribly important for our preaching and teaching, and reminds all of us that we can only see the divine derierre.  We should never pretend to know more than God's backside revealed to us in the Crucified One.

 Moses said to the Lord, ‘See, you have said to me, “Bring up this people”; but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, “I know you by name, and you have also found favour in my sight.” Now if I have found favour in your sight, show me your ways, so that I may know you and find favour in your sight. Consider too that this nation is your people.’ He said, ‘My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.’ And he said to him, ‘If your presence will not go, do not carry us up from here. For how shall it be known that I have found favour in your sight, I and your people, unless you go with us? In this way, we shall be distinct, I and your people, from every people on the face of the earth.’

 The Lord said to Moses, ‘I will do the very thing that you have asked; for you have found favour in my sight, and I know you by name.’ Moses said, ‘Show me your glory, I pray.’ And he said, ‘I will make all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim before you the name, “The Lord”; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. But’, he said, ‘you cannot see my face; for no one shall see me and live.’ And the Lord continued, ‘See, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock; and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by; then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back; but my face shall not be seen.’ - Exodus 33.12-23

Image:	Hand of God, from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. http://diglib.library.vanderbilt.edu/act-imagelink.pl?RC=55257[retrieved March 6, 2019]. Original source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hand_gottes.jpg.