An Ignatian Meditation for the Transfiguration
Encountering the Mystical Christ in an Imaginal Way
I wrote the following meditation a while back for use during retreats, especially retreats focusing on Ignatian prayer (prayer using the imagination). Happy to make it available here.
Listen to the recording of this meditation, or read it at your own pace. I recommend pausing as frequently as possible to gently be present to your imagination and how it guides you deeper into this meditative form of prayer. Note: the recording includes about 15 minutes of silence.
Imaginal Prayer: the Transfiguration
To enter into this time of prayer, sit in a way that is comfortable for your body and is conducive to being both relaxed and alert. I encourage you to close your eyes and to breathe several gentle, cleansing breaths. Simply be in the moment and trust that the Holy Spirit who is in your heart will guide you in your prayer.
In this prayer, we are going to journey deep into the imagination to encounter the Spirit within. As we take this inner journey, I encourage you to suspend disbelief. Imagination, we are assured by great mystical teachers like Aelred of Rievaulx and Ignatius, is more than merely a mental capacity for make-believe: it is the contemplative theater in which the very Spirit of God may communicate directly with us.
We are entering our inner threshold to the sacred presence. Great mystics like Julian of Norwich invite us to bring a generous capacity for trust into our prayer. So let us trust the Spirit who has been poured into our hearts, and who meets us in the depth of our imaginal awareness. All we need to do is to trust, consent, and imagine. Trust… consent… and imagine…
I invite you now to imagine what it was like to be one of the followers of Jesus of Nazareth: a disciple among those who were his companions on his travels from town to town as he spread his message of God’s radical and infinite love and mercy, bringing heavenly grace and bodily healing to people wherever he went.
Imagine, now, that the company has been on the road for much of the day, walking through the wilderness of Palestine as you and the other disciples accompany Jesus on this mission. Now the sun is setting, and a suitable place for camping has been selected. All the disciples have set up their camps for the night, and while people are busy lighting fires and preparing their evening meal, Jesus motions to Peter and James and John to come to him. Jesus sees you watching, and he smiles and invites you to follow along.
You walk with Jesus and his three closest friends, and they leave the encampment and begin to climb the nearby mountain. Be present with your feelings. Notice the exertion it takes to climb. Observe the kindness in Jesus’s eyes as he waits for you and the other disciples to catch up with him. Gently attend to what you are sensing, here with Jesus in this intimate setting.
Eventually you all reach the top of this high mountain. Take however much time you need to catch your breath, but watch Jesus closely, for almost immediately, he begins to pray.
Notice Jesus praying. What is the expression on his face like? Is he standing, sitting, or kneeling? How is he holding his arms, his hands? Are his eyes open or closed? Be with Jesus in prayer and calibrate your own heart so that you are praying with Jesus, alongside Jesus, in harmony with Jesus.
As you continue to gaze upon Jesus’s face, notice that a miracle happens.
The appearance of Jesus’s face begins to change. He begins to shine like the sun. Even Jesus’s clothes become dazzling white, whiter than anyone could ever bleach.
As you watch, Jesus is being transfigured into pure light and pure love.
As you gaze upon this extraordinary moment, attend to how you react and respond. What are you feeling? What thoughts are moving through your heart and your mind?
Thanks to the radiance emanating from the Christ, you become engulfed in an ocean of light. You remember Jesus proclaiming that he was the light of the world, and now those words carry new meaning for you. You also remember he said that you, and all the disciples, are also the light of the world. Ponder the meaning of these words. As this ocean of light flows to you and through you, notice how you, too, remain in light. You were created from stardust, after all. You are truly light embodied in material form. Now, immersed in the light of Christ, you may notice how your own light is seeking to respond, like a candle burning in the sun. Let your light shine, in resonance with the infinite light of the transfigured Christ.
If you need to, shield or squint your eyes so that you can continue to gaze upon Jesus even in this brilliant light. As your eyes rest on his lovely luminous countenance, notice a new marvel: two companions suddenly appear with Jesus. Even though you have never seen them before, your gut realizes that these two apparitions are great figures from the history of Israel: Moses, who led the people from slavery to freedom, and Elijah, the great prophet.
Observe how they interact with the incandescent Christ. Are they, too, radiant? Reflect on the shimmering communion here between Jesus and his friends.
You notice that Jesus and Moses and Elijah are speaking with each other.
Listen to what these three are saying. They speak about what will happen in Jerusalem, and about what is to come to Jesus. But listen carefully and see if there is anything else that they speak of, anything that might be especially meaningful for you.
Next to you, Peter and James and John seem like they are sleepy, but the glory of the bright light and the remarkable apparition of Moses and Elijah captures their attention. Look at the disciples. Notice how they react to the miracle that is taking place. Does the expressions on their faces surprise you? Can you tell what is going on inside them? How does their reaction to the Transfiguration make an impact on you? What are you feeling right now?
By their gestures and the way that they interact with Jesus, it seems that Moses and Elijah are preparing to leave, when suddenly Peter blurts out, “Teacher, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
It seems like Peter’s voice is quavering.
While he was saying this, a cloud appears and overshadows the mountaintop. Notice what it feels like to enter the cloud. How does the light and the mist meet each other? How do they interact, and how do they change and transform each other?
What are you experiencing? What are you thinking? How is this, too, a way of praying?
Then from the cloud you hear a voice.
The voice says, “This is my Son, my Beloved, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him!” What is it like to hear this voice, in the middle of the cloud? How do you respond to the voice? What thoughts, emotions, or insights arise inside you? What does it mean to receive and follow the wisdom of this voice?
Take it all in. Settle into the cool mist of the cloud. See how the light of Jesus’s transfigured radiance meets the foggy mists of the all-pervading cloud. Notice how limited your vision is, and how limited your hearing as well. Ponder the meaning of the voice in the cloud.
Now, notice that Peter and James and John have fallen to the ground.
What about you? How are you responding to this moment? What are you being invited to? What hope and possibility emerges from this moment?
Jesus comes to each of the disciples and says, “Get up, do not be afraid.” Now Jesus approaches you. You are now face to face with Jesus, his face glowing like the sun. What do you see? What is his body language like? What words or wisdom does he offer you at this pivotal moment? Does he invite you to be unafraid? If so, what does that mean to you?
Almost as quickly as it happened, the miracle seems to pass. You and your companions look up, and you see only Jesus. Perhaps there is still the faintest glow in his eyes, or in his face, which you can perceive there in the darkening dusk. Now Jesus beckons the four of you to the path down the mountain. It is time to leave and to return to your friends who are camped far below.
As you walk down the mountain, Jesus speaks. He instructs you to be discreet about what you have seen. He says to tell no one about this until after the resurrection.
What else does Jesus say? Does he have a message that is especially for you?
The other disciples are asking Jesus questions — questions about Moses and Elijah, and about John the Baptist. As you listen to them, consider if you have a question or two for Jesus. What do you want to ask him? What do you want to know, or to hear from his lips? Imagine posing your question to Jesus, and imagine what his reply would be like. Take this time now to silently and prayerfully interact with Jesus.
As you return to the camp with Peter and James and John, see how silent they are. Jesus asked you to say nothing; in other words, he asked you to be silent too. Take some time now to simply be silent in Jesus’s presence. You don’t need to come up with clever thoughts or words. Simply be still, and let your stillness be a prayer.
The time has come now to conclude this time of imaginal prayer. You don’t really need to say goodbye to Jesus or the Spirit, since they remain always in your heart. Simply allow your imagination to rest, so that you are simply in your body, here and now. Breathe gently. Let this process take all the time it needs. When you are ready, and only then, allow yourself slowly to open your eyes. Simply be present in this place, here and now. Be grounded in your body and let that sense of being grounded be your amen.
If you need to write in your journal, take some time for that. Try to hold this experience of prayer tenderly within you, now and in the hours to come.
This meditation is based on Ignatian forms of imaginative prayer. If you’d like to learn more about Ignatian spirituality, I recommend James Martin’s wonderful book The Jesuit Guide to (Almost Everything): A Spirituality for Real Life. Please use this either for personal prayer or in a group or retreat setting. All I ask is that you acknowledge me as the author and include this URL as the source: www.carlmccolman.net … thank you!
