Transfiguration – 2021
Mark 9:2-9
Marian Free
In the name of God whose presence in the world is independent of anything that we might do. Amen.
During the week I had the privilege of listening to Sam Wells, the current Rector of St Martin in the Fields in London. Our Diocese, in conjunction with Heartedge, an initiative of that church, has organised a number of presentations/discussions to help us think about the church after COVID and to discern the direction in which God might be calling us as we move forward[1]. In looking at the church before COVID (BC) and after COVID (AC) Sam distinguishes between “strategic church” and “tactic church”. Strategic church, he says, builds a citadel and makes occasional forays out of the citadel before returning to the safety of the base. “Strategic church” assumes, Sam argues, that Jesus ascended into heaven before he concluded his work on earth and that therefore it is up to the church to do that work for him. In this model, the church is ‘the principle and definitive way’ God continues to work (and to be known) in the world. “Tactic church” on the other hand has no fixed home base, nowhere to store it’s booty and survives through hand-to-hand engagements with those on the ground. “Tactic church” understands that Christ ‘plays in 10,000 places’[2] and is therefore not reliant on anyone least of all us. “Tactic church” does not have to be ‘the source from which all blessings flow.’
By way of illustration, Sam told the story of three women who got together to think how they might spend their Sunday mornings while their church was closed for repairs. One woman decided that she would go to a car boot sale, another to a Sunday league football games and the third to IKEA. Each Sunday they engaged with the people whom they met in those settings and learnt something about their lives. They were excited by their encounters and by what they experienced. After three weeks, when the church reopened for worship, they were genuinely unable to decide whether or not they should return. Their engagement with the community had opened their eyes to new ways of relating to and sharing the gospel with the world. They had discovered that church was not the sole source of relationship, nor the only place in which God could be encountered. In the words of one, their God was now too big for the church. Without having a name for their experience, the women had moved from “strategic church” to “tactic church”.
It could be argued that the Transfiguration illustrates the difference between “strategic church” and “tactic church”. A number of clues point in this direction. In the first instance Jesus’ meeting with Moses and Elijah is a clear reminder that Jesus is not restricted to time and place. If he is not bound by time and place, his ascension into heaven does not herald and end to his ministry – which existed before he began his earthly existence and will continue after his ascension. In other words, the church has no need to replace Jesus who continues to be present in the world – a core assumption of “tactic church”.
Secondly, Peter’s reaction is telling and is probably a good example of the “strategic church” model. Peter (who, to be fair, is terrified) wants to hold on to the moment, to build booths for Moses, Elijah and Jesus. In other words, he seems to want to create a citadel from which ministry can be carried out – to freeze the moment in time so that it can be relived over and over. Jesus, however, is more interested in a church that is on the move, that is engaged with the world. Jesus promotes “tactic church”. He leads the disciples back down the mountain where they are immediately plunged into the fears, the hopes, the doubts and the faith of the community in which they live (9:14-29).
Then, there is the voice from heaven. You will recall that there was also a voice from heaven at Jesus’ baptism. “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.” The language here is very much the same: “This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!” but there is a significant difference. On the occasion of Jesus’ baptism, the voice from heaven was principally for Jesus’ benefit. On the mountain, the voice from heaven is for the disciples – “listen to him”.
Finally, there is Jesus’ discussion with the disciples on the way down the mountain (their return to the mundane and the ordinary, to their engagement with the world). Jesus instructs the disciples not to tell anyone what they have seen “until the Son of Man had risen from the dead.” Peter, James and John have been given a glimpse of Jesus’ true nature, they have learnt that the one whom they follow is not bound by time and place and have been entrusted with the knowledge that even though Jesus will die, he will rise from the dead (be with them always).
When the disciples are plunged back into the world, they carry with them God’s vision for the church – the glory of God cannot be contained in booths, God’s presence in the world cannot be limited to the three years of Jesus’ ministry, and the role of the disciples (the church) is to throw themselves into the lives of the community, where they will discover that Jesus is there ahead of them.
We, of course, have no idea what the world will look like post-COVID, nor can we begin to imagine how the church will emerge from this time of uncertainty and ambiguity. What we can be sure of is this – with or without us, God is at play in the world and God invites us to join in that grand adventure.
[1] A recording of the talk is available. https://www.facebook.com/theHeartEdge/videos/424181598801239
[2] From Gerald Manly Hopkins.
Swallowsrest 