Listen.

Years ago we were returning home from a vacation in the mountains and I decided to surprise Meg and the kids by taking them to a Braves game at Turner Field. One of the cool things about Turner Field was that they had preserved the spot from the old Fulton County Stadium where Henry Aaron’s 715th home run had cleared the outfield fence. That home run broke Babe Ruth’s long-standing record. They left the fence there, noted the spot where Tom House, a relief pitcher for the Braves, caught the ball in the bullpen. It was out in the parking lot.

That had been a big, big deal for me. I was 12 when it happened. I’ve seen the footage so many times that I cannot recall whether or not I saw it live, but they were broadcasting every Braves game at the time so I think so. It was a big deal.

I tried to get that across to Meg and the kids.  Meg loves baseball so she got it. Our kids, not so much. But they knew enough from experience that it is best to happily endure their father’s bouts of nostalgia. And maybe someday they’ll remember it too. It is still there, in the “Green” parking at what is now Georgia State University’s stadium. You can look up “Hank Aaron Wall” on Google Maps to see it.

Often our favorite places are objectively beautiful, places that most of us would hail as such be it a beach or a mountain or a waterfall. Sometimes they are beautiful because of the people and moments we’ve shared. Sometimes they are both but in any case we come to love them.

Today being St. Valentine’s Day, we shall look at today’s gospel from the angle of love. Love has a most transformative effect on us borne out of our perceptions. Whether we are talking about a special person, be it romantic love or family or friendship, a favorite place or a favorite song, a favorite team, when we invest our hearts it affects our vision.

And it works the other way, our vision radically affects our hearts. The places and people become etched into our very being, such that as our perception of them grows and changes – transfigures to our eyes – we are transformed by them.

Today’s Gospel is Mark’s account of what we call the Transfiguration. Unlike so many of the other episodes in Mark, this one tracks almost word for word with Matthew and Luke. (Luke does add just a bit that I’ll note in a moment.) We should look carefully at the elements of this event.

Jesus took with him Peter, James and John. All of the Gospels identify these three as forming an inner circle among Jesus’ 12 disciples. He pulls them aside at key moments, such as the raising of the dead little girl in chapter five and his intense prayer at the Garden of Gethsemane. Peter attests to it again in his second letter, “We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven, while we were with him on the holy mountain.” (2 Peter 1:18) John references it in the prologue of his Gospel, “And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14) We are depending on their testimony; they are the only ones who saw this.

They go up on a high mountain. Recall that this season of Epiphany began with the magi following a star. A star is a sign in the heavens which, while pointing us in the right direction, is otherwise inaccessible. We close this season with a sign that is immanent, close. We cannot reach the stars, but we can climb a mountain.

Mountains and the vistas they provide tend to work on us, especially those of us who live in a relatively flat area like Florida. And if we regard heaven as that distant place beyond our reach, mountains help us feel a good deal closer.

It is on the mountain that they get a glimpse of Jesus as he truly is, and he is dazzling. Think of a welder’s spark, be it from an acetylene torch or an arc weld. The welder needs a shield to guard his face from the sparks and a very dark eyepiece to see what he is doing in that brilliant light.

This reminds us of Moses on the mountain and his encounter with God that made his own face shine. Jesus’ radiance is a transfiguration to the disciples’ view that transforms them. They can’t fully understand it and won’t until after Jesus is raised from the dead, but it is a start.

Moses and Elijah arrive. Moses represents the Law and Elijah represents the prophets. Peter’s mistake is twofold. First, the fact that he wants to designate the place for this special moment is an error. The spot isn’t the point; the moment isn’t the point. God doesn’t want future pilgrims dragging their disinterested kids into a parking lot to hear about it. He wants them to focus on Jesus. Peter’s second mistake is equating Jesus with Moses and Elijah. After centuries of telling Israel to listen to them, God is now directing them to listen to Jesus.

This carries us to the Shema.

The very heart of the Law is The Great Commandment, which is given in what Jews call The Shema.  If you have ever been to a Jewish person’s home they may have a little narrow box nailed up in the door frame.  Inside that little box is a little scroll, upon which is written the following passage from Deuteronomy, 6:4-9: Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. Recite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. Bind them as a sign on your hand, fix them as an emblem on your forehead, and write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

It is called the Shema because Shema is the Hebrew word for LISTEN.  It says “hear” here, but think of it for a moment as LISTEN.  That is in effect the preamble commandment for the first commandment.  The Lord is God, the Lord is one, the Lord alone.  I think God is pretty well aware of that.  He wants us to get it.  He wants us to LISTEN.

That is the beginning of wisdom, as the Proverbs tell us.  That is the central point of the Law.  That is the central point of faith, that we listen, read, mark and inwardly digest that God’s essential message to us is I AM that I AM.  Listen.

Now Peter, James and John are hearing God say Shema to Jesus.  Listen to him.  Why, because he is my beloved son.  Now remember, Moses is standing right there, or was right up until that moment.  God’s call to listen.

God’s glory is radiant. It is love; pure love, brilliant love, blinding love. It is also truth, radiant, brilliant and blinding. It is faith, radiant, brilliant and blinding. It is hope, radiant brilliant and blinding. It is purpose and meaning shining forth and beckoning us to our destiny.

Listen to him.  Love him with all your heart, and with all your mind, and with all your might.  Keep him in your heart.  Share him with your children and talk about him when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise.  Bind him as a sign on your hand – let him be evident in all that you do.  Bind him as a sign on your forehead – let his love and truth guide your thoughts and bring you peace.  Let his love reign over your doorposts and your gates, so that coming or going you walk with him.

But above all, LISTEN: only to Jesus.

AMEN