As I looked, thrones were placed and one that was ancient of days took his seat; his raiment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool; his throne was fiery flames, its wheels were burning fire.  A stream of fire issued and came forth from before him; a thousand thousands served him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him; the court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.  I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him.

Today's Song of Praise is taken from Psalm 97/98(V/RSV):

        O sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things! His right hand and his holy arm have gotten him victory.
        The LORD has made known his victory, he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.
        Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody!
        With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD!
        Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; the world and those who dwell in it!
        Before the LORD, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with equity.

Today's Epistle is from the Second Letter of Peter, beginning at the 1st Chapter, and the 16h Verse:

        For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were
eyewitnesses of his majesty.  For when he received honor and glory from God the Father and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased," we heard this voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain.  And we have the prophetic word made more sure. You will do well to pay attention to this as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

+ A Reading from the Gospel of Mark, beginning at the 9th Chapter, and the 2nd Verse:

        And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves; and he was transfigured before them, and his garments became glistening, intensely white, as no fuller on earth could bleach them.  And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses; and they were talking to Jesus.  And Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is well that we are here; let us make three booths, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah."  For he did not know what to say, for they were exceedingly afraid.  And a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice came out of the cloud, "This is my beloved Son; listen to him."  And suddenly looking around they no longer saw any one with them but Jesus only.  And as they were coming down the mountain, he charged them to tell no one what they had seen, until the Son of man should have risen from the dead.  So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what the rising from the dead meant.

        The Transfiguration is difficult to preach on, precisely because it is so far removed from ordinary life, from the ordinary concerns and realities that we face, that making analogies and connections is next to impossible.  Overwhelming miracles just sort of leave us stunned, with our mouths hanging open.

        In today's First Reading, Daniel talks about the fourth of his visions -- and here we have the first of the "Merkabah" texts -- the vision of the "throne" or "chariot", usually of fire -- which will be so prominent in Jewish and Christian mysticism.  The best guess for the date when Daniel was written is 165 B.C. -- Just before the death of Antioches IV Epiphanes, who had sacked Jerusalem, profaned the Temple, and was persecuting the Jews for not adopting his pagan religion.

        The next "throne" text in the Bible is, of course, Revelations, written just before 100 A.D. -- although there were numerous other Apocalyptic writings, Jewish and arguably Christian, both before and after it.  Daniel describes the "ancient of days" sitting on the fiery throne, but as time went on, and the tradition developed, the only thing visible is the throne, with the Glory of the Most High surrounding and filling it.

        Daniel's three previous visions depicted animals of various sorts -- the pagan kingdoms which had conquered and persecuted Israel.  In this vision, however, "one like the son of man" -- i.e. a human figure, not an animal -- appears.  This figure is both Cyrus the Great, the Persian king who set the Jews free from their Babylonian Captivity, and the Messiah who is to come, to lead Israel back to the Lord, and to Glory.

        In apocalyptic literature from the time of Daniel forward, a voice speaks from the midst of the Glory which cannot be looked at directly, or even perceived with the human mind.  This voice is the oracular and prophetic voice of power, like the voice of the Lord coming from the Burning Bush in Moses' vision, and the voice of the Lord in the prophetic books.

        In the selection from the 2nd Letter of Peter which makes up today's Epistle, we see a reference to the Transfiguration described in today's Gospel -- being on the holy mountain, and hearing the words:  "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,", or "...listen to him"  In this vision, Jesus fulfills the prophecy of Daniel, that the "Son of Man" would appear before the Ancient of Days and be received.  The Father HImself, in a vision, authenticates Jesus' words and mission to the Apostles.

        The vision of the Light, of Fire, as the symbol of the Glory of the Lord continues in Christian mysticism from that day to this.  The mystic typically describes approaching the light, being blinded by it, then consumed, and awakening some time later, with no coherent memory.  This is the image of "theosis", union with God, that the Orthodox Eastern theologians and mystics speak of -- and the experience of being struck dumb by the Power and the Glory has shaped their "apophatic" approach to theology -- that any positive statement about God is so far from the truth as to be almost a lie, so the only useful statements are those which say what God is not.

        Let us pray, then, the we may be worthy to walk into that light, and be swallowed up in the Glory and Ecstasy which is the Presence of God, led by our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ . . .

        In the Name of
        The Father     +
        And of the Son
        And of the Holy Spirit
Amen.