This morning we left the city of Tiberias on the Sea of
Galilee (in the north of Israel) and made our way to Mount Tabor where Jesus
was transfigured and his glory was revealed to Peter, James, and John before he
began his journey to Jerusalem (158 kilometers to the south) to give his life
for us.
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| Mount Tabor, the only mountain in Galilee |
On the way to Mount Tabor, we drove past the site of the
Battle of the Horns of Hattin. It was here that the army of Saladin
defeated the Crusader army on July 4, 1187, thus ending the Kingdom of
Jerusalem. With that defeat, the Holy Land was again under Muslim control.
The other priest and I were quickly whisked away to the
sacristy to prepare for the celebration of the Holy Mass, the texts of which
were taken from the Feast of the Transfiguration. Each of the Masses we will
celebrate in the Holy Land will be site specific, as is often the case with
pilgrimage destinations.
There was a bit of a paradox offering the Holy Mass on Mount
Tabor. When he was transfigured on this mountain, the glory of Jesus was
apparent to the Apostles, which is why they “fell silent and did not at that
time tell anyone what they had seen” (Luke 9:36). In the Eucharist, his glory
remains hidden under the appearances of bread of wine, though it is revealed to
those who believe.
Mount Tabor is also where the Risen Lord gave the Great
Commission to the Apostles before his ascension to the right hand of the Father
(see Matthew 28:16). The connection between his glory and the proclamation of
the Gospel should be evident to all. Unless we have known his glory, we cannot
be adequate heralds of his good news. This is why a sharing in the sacramental
life of the Church is so very important. Within these signs, his glory is
revealed and we are sent.
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