"This is My Beloved Son, Listen to Him"

After Jesus was baptized, he came up from the water and behold, the heavens were opened for him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming upon him.  And a voice came from the heavens saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased”.  (Mt. 3: 16-17).

And he was transfigured before them; his face shone like the sun and his clothes became white as light…….a bright cloud cast a shadow over them, then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him”.  (Mt. 17: 2, 5).

“I am troubled now”.  Yet what should I say”?  “Father, save me from this hour”?  “But it was for this purpose that I came to this hour”.  “Father, glorify your name”.  Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it and will glorify it again”.  (Jn. 12: 27-28).

“Father, the hour has come .  Give glory to your son, so that your son may glorify you, just as you gave him authority over all people, so that he may give eternal life to all you gave him”.  “I glorified you on earth by accomplishing the work you gave me to do.  Now glorify me, Father, with you, with the glory I had with you before the world began”.  (Jn. 17: 1-2, 5).

What further proof do we need when this dialogue between Jesus and His Father so intimately connect the very trust and love they have for each other?  This connection of intense love is the Holy Spirit they share together and hand on to us. 

Our faith lies on these words, our allegiance to God rests upon the very essence of the Holy Trinity portrayed so elegantly within these scripture passages.  The journey through Lent to the Resurrection are found deep herein.  

Ralph B. Hathaway, Holy Week 2019