Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord
Vanity, Anxiety, and the Hidden Life in God
Time Running Out
I will be running a live Sacred Music Foundations event which will cover three of the most important topics in sacred music, give you resources for study, and allow you to implement new systems at your parish for liturgical renewal.
If this is something you or someone you know may be interested in, please check out the following link. Otherwise, on to this weeks article.
There are some days when the sky cracks open, and everything you thought you knew about God suddenly becomes too small.
I wonder what it would’ve felt like for Peter. To be standing on the mountaintop, caught somewhere between awe and terror, mumbling something about tents—trying to bottle what can’t be bottled. Maybe it was an instinct. If God finally breaks through in all His beauty, the least we can do is try to hold Him in place.
But that’s the thing about glory. It moves. It speaks. It consumes.
In Daniel’s vision, thrones are set up, fire streams forward, and a figure “like a Son of Man” ascends the clouds to stand before the Ancient One. It’s not exactly bedtime story stuff—it’s the kind of language that makes your knees go soft. Thrones of flame, myriads serving Him, dominion that will never be taken away.
It’s easy to forget just how dramatic God is.
We spend most of our time trying to domesticate Him. Trim the edges. Edit the vocabulary. Soften the music. Make Him a little more palatable to a weary congregation.
But the truth is, Christianity isn’t palatable. It’s terrifying. Beautiful, yes. But terrifying.
Because if this man—this Jesus—is who He says He is, then everything changes. The readings today won’t let us sidestep that. This isn't a sentimental story of mountain-top nostalgia. This is a declaration of cosmic kingship. Dominion. Glory. Fire.
And in the middle of all that majesty, one quiet phrase: “Listen to Him.”
That’s the center of it all. Not the shining face. Not the white garments. Not even the voice from heaven. The imperative cuts through the fog: Listen to Him.
Peter wants to build something permanent, but the Father just wants him to listen. No tents. No frantic responses. No control.
It’s easy, especially in ministry, to try to lock God in place. To institutionalize His glory. To put on the same Mass with the same songs with the same gestures and hope something sticks. We create liturgical habits, which are good and necessary—but if they’re not animated by listening, they calcify.
There’s a reason Jesus took them up a mountain to pray.
Prayer reorients. It clarifies. It terrifies. It quiets the noise long enough for you to hear what you didn’t want to.
And music ministers—you have a peculiar part in all this.
Because music is the cloud.
It is the veil. The shadow. The presence that comes and overwhelms. You aren't just singing songs—you are ushering people into the experience of divine radiance. When the liturgy is properly animated, the veil between heaven and earth thins, and the people begin to tremble—not at you, not at your technique, but at the Voice speaking from within the cloud.
Sacrosanctum Concilium tells us that sacred music must be “holy, true art, and universal.” That’s not a stylistic prescription. That’s a call to glory. To write, to sing, to serve in a way that stirs awe—not admiration.
It’s easy to get tired. To sing to empty pews. To work for pastors who won’t listen. To prepare choirs who drag their feet. To feel like you're just running through the motions.
But if you are faithful, and if you are listening, you are placing sound into the silence. And the Father still speaks.
The early Church Fathers saw the Transfiguration as a preview of the Resurrection. A moment when time folded in on itself, when Jesus gave them a glimpse of what was coming. And in that sense, every Liturgy—every sung Kyrie, every quiet chant, every reverent psalm—is a preview, too.
The glory is hidden. But not gone.
Don’t be surprised if you find yourself mumbling strange things like Peter. Don’t be ashamed if you don’t know what to say. Just stay awake. Stay near. Stay listening.
Because the mountain isn’t just a story. It’s a pattern.
And the Voice still speaks in the cloud.
Inspiration from across the internet.
→ did you know that you can talk to dolphins??? and that it is illegal!!!!
→ an interesting audio on an FBI negotiator turned author
My music of the week.
1) Well-Tempered Clavier never gets old
2) now this is just some class Beethoven lore
General Information - Información General
Color of Vestments - White
Color de Las Vestiduras - Blanca
Song Recommendations
Entrance - Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies (RATISBON) [sheet music] [audio]
Kyrie - Missa Spei
Gloria - Missa Spei
Responsorial Psalm - Psalm 97:1-2, 5-6, 9
Gospel Acclamation - Matthew 17:5c
Offertory - Jesus on the Mountain Peak (MOWSLEY) [sheet music] [audio]
Sanctus - Missa Spei
Mysterium Fidei - Missa Spei
Amen - Missa Spei
Agnus Dei - Missa Spei
Communion 1 - Transfigure Us, O Lord (Bob Hurd) [sheet music] [audio]
Meditation - Listen to Him (Madrigal)
Recessional - Alleluia! Sing to Jesus (HYFRYDOL) [sheet music] [audio]
Recomendaciones de Canciones
Entrance - Brille Tu Luz [sheet music] [audio]
Kyrie - Missa Spei
Gloria - Missa Spei
Responsorial Psalm - Salmo 96, 1-2. 5-6. 9
Gospel Acclamation - Mateo 17, 5
Offertory - Amanecer [sheet music] [audio]
Sanctus - Missa Spei
Mysterium Fidei - Missa Spei
Amen - Missa Spei
Agnus Dei - Missa Spei
Communion 1 - El Señor es mi luz [sheet music] [audio]
Meditation - Listen to Him (Madrigal)
Recessional - Jubilosos, te adoramos [sheet music] [audio]
