The Transfiguration

The Feast of the Transfiguration (Matthew 16:24). The event of the Transfiguration is a Diamond placed within a setting of 5 predictions of the suffering of Jesus (16:21; 24; 17:9; 17:12; and 17:22). We just heard the first of the five predictions at the end of which Peter tries to stop Jesus and Jesus responds 'Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle in my path, because the way you think is not God's way but man's.' Why does Jesus call Peter Satan? Because Peter what Satan is always trying to do – turn Jesus away from the will and mission of the Father. That Jesus would save souls from hell by his suffering, death and Resurrection is the will of the Father. Then Jesus said to his disciples, 'If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross and follow me. For anyone who wants to save his life will lose it; but anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it. What get if we are followers of Jesus is to be Agents of Change – Jesus goes before us, saving souls by taking up his Cross, then he invites us to help him save souls by taking up our own crosses. If we do, then our suffering will help to save souls and we will share in his glory – which he revealed in the Transfiguration. At Fatima Mary said, God wishes to establish in the World Devotion to My Immaculate Heart, wanting to save souls by this means.What does devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary mean? For one it means to imitate the Heart of Mary. What was the response of the Immaculate Heart of Mary during the suffering of Jesus? What did she do? She traveled through all the human emotions of a mother – she experienced fear, anger, helplessness, darkness, discouragement, the deepest sorrow She Prayed She accepted the Will of the Father with Trust She offered Her Sacrifice with Love  For what Purpose? For the conversion of sinners – to save souls from Hell – that is why her Son suffered and died. Devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary means to be Consecrated or Dedicated to live in imitation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, to do what She did Face our Cross Go through all the human emotions that come with suffering  Accept with Trust what you can’t change Offer your sacrifice with love Joining it to the sacrifice of Christ For the conversion of souls  Why should we do this? Because Jesus and Mary are inviting us to help them save the world and sous from self-destruction by taking up our cross.Think of what Christ suffered in this life, and then arm yourselves with the same resolution that he had: anyone who in this life has bodily suffering has broken with sin, because for the rest of his life on earth he is not ruled by human passions but only by the will of God. Everything will soon come to an end, so, to pray better, keep a calm and sober mind. My dear people, you must not think it unaccountable that you should be tested by fire. There is nothing extraordinary in what has happened to you. If you can have some share in the sufferings of Christ, be glad, because you will enjoy a much greater gladness when his glory is revealed. The Problem with suffering is that  We feel like helpless victims of unjust suffering But we are not the victim of a random senseless forces  We are the Agents of Change Christ was not a Victim in His Passion and Death He was the Agent of Change His Sacrifice Changed the World  I am not a victim when I suffer and die I am an Agent of Change I am a co-Redeemer with Jesus and Mary  This is where I make my greatest impact! This is where we prove our love for God and help Jesus save souls  God says – I want you help me save souls I say, “Yes, I want to help you!” Ok - here is your Cross