Epiphany 08: Transfiguration Sunday

In his message today about the Transfiguration, after talking about Moses & Elijah’s experiences with the shining glory of God, Tim said, “nobody could see God, but they could see where God had been.” Take a moment to consider whether or not you’ve had an experience (or experiences) in which you’ve had this same sense - that you can see the evidence of God having been present in an extraordinary way. What were the circumstances? What was that “signature” of God like? How did you recognize it? What conditions might make that type of experience more possible? If you’ve not had that experience at all, what are your thoughts about why?

Tim said, “The only way to see God is to attend to the mystery…enter into the great cloud of unknowing. Yet we spend much of our lives, trying to drain the world of mystery…name, explain, control. …So maybe it’s not so surprising that it has become so difficult to believe.” What’s your relationship to mystery? Is it a comfortable space for you? Do you feel that you encounter it often? Ever? Discuss as a group the nature of mystery in your modern life. Are there spaces or contexts where mystery feels more permissible? More accessible? What do you think of challenging any constraints you may (even unconsciously) put around the presence and experience of the mysterious?

Tim talked about the reality that the presence of God’s shining face is most often revealed through ordinary people and in our ordinary lives. Is this hard for you to believe? Do you have any kinds of informal practices that help you to better see God in the people around you each and every day? If so, share. If not, what could that look like for you? What do you think keeps you from easily seeing God in every single person around you? In other areas of your daily life?