Transfiguration Thoughts

In the verses preceding Mark’s Transfiguration passage, Jesus has just articulated what is arguably his most disturbing, difficult teaching of all: that he must suffer, die, and rise again – and that anyone who wishes to follow him must “deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me”.  The Transfiguration’s light, then, acts as a kind of reassurance for Peter, John, and James (and for the rest of us!).  It’s as if Mark is saying: We’re now making the turn toward Golgotha, and that means descending into the valley of the shadow of death.  But fear not! Keep this astonishing, mysterious mountaintop story in mind as we go. Carry it like a torch, for it can help show the way – not least because it gives us a glimpse of where all this is headed…