Reflection for Transfiguration Sunday

15^th February 2026

Theme: Mountaintop Experiences
By Rev Dr Fei Taule’ale’ausumai

Firstly to those who have joined us on our livestream, kia ora, talofa lava, greetings.

Let me begin with a question.  What do we do with stories that sound too extraordinary to be true?  Stories of shining faces.  Voices from clouds.  Mountaintop revelations.

In our modern, scientific, questioning world, it can be difficult to know what to do with a story like the Transfiguration.  Did it actually happen exactly like that?  Was there literal light?  Did Moses and Elijah physically appear?  Some people hear this story and quietly think:  That sounds impossible.  That sounds mythical.  That sounds like something from another time.  And that’s okay. Because the power of this story does not depend on whether we can verify it with a camera or a scientific instrument.  Its power lies in what it reveals about human experience, about faith, about moments when everything suddenly becomes clear.

The Transfiguration is less about physics and more about perception and insight and about recognising the moments when we suddenly see differently.

There are moments in life when everything seems to come into focus.  Moments when the fog lifts when, for just a brief time, we can see clearly.

We may call these Transfiguration moments or mountaintop experiences.

I’m sure most of us have had moments in our lives when we suddenly see who we are.  Moments when something clicks, when we understand our purpose when, for a brief time, the world feels clearer.

The Gospel writer Matthew tells us that Jesus took Peter, James, and John up a mountain.  Jesus has told his disciples that he will suffer.  That he will be rejected.  That following him will not always be easy.  So it is in the middle of this uncertainty  when they are unsure and when they are struggling.   And there, something changed — not necessarily in Jesus’ essence, but in their perception of him.  Whether we understand this as literal, symbolic, or somewhere in between, the story points to something deeply human:  there are moments in life when clarity breaks through confusion.   And the disciples are confused.  They thought Messiah meant victory.  They did not expect suffering.

And on that mountain, something extraordinary happens.  Jesus is transfigured before them.  According to Matthew’s reading Jesus’ face shines like the sun and his clothes become dazzling white.  Moses and Elijah appear beside him the law and the prophets standing in conversation with him.

And then a cloud overshadows them  the same kind of cloud that once covered Mount Sinai when Moses encountered God.

And from the cloud comes a voice:
“This is my beloved Son… listen to him.”

And perhaps that is when mountaintop experiences most often occur for us in our own lives, not when life is easy, but when we need reassurance.

I’ve been thinking about that this week.  About mountaintop experiences.

About moments of clarity that feel almost surreal.  Because I have had one.

Not on a literal mountain.  But in a university small examination room.

The day of my PhD Viva, my oral examination.  I walked in with fear and trembling.  It was the culmination of seven years of research, seven years of wondering if I could answer the question, “what is your theoretical framework”.  I believe I still didn’t know the answer to that and my second supervisor kept reminding me of that.

I walked into the room and saw who was there: an external supervisor in fact the principal of the University of Samoa, a Presbyterian retired who was also a doctor of philosophy, the chair of the Doctoral Board, and my two supervisors.

And I went in thinking:  This is my mountain,  This is the climb.  After the salutations the questions began and something unexpected happened.  I literally felt transfigured, no more fear, overwhelmed with a sense of purpose and confidence.  The answers flowed not because I had rehearsed every word.

But because the questions felt as though they had been prepared for my whole life. For my journey. For my experience.  And for a moment everything aligned.

All those years of struggle suddenly made sense.  All those questions found their place.  All that uncertainty gave way to clarity.

And after the interview, it was over an hour, I was asked to go wait in the waiting room, which I did. And seemed to be long deliberations, but then when I was invited back in to the room.  They all stood up, and said, congratulations Dr Fei you have passed.  There was just small addition I had to add and that was it.

I walked out of that room as if I just climbed Mount Everest. I was at the height of the peak of the mountain and I could just see wide the whole world from the top of that mountain. That would be my most exciting. Mountaintop experiences in my lifetime. Internally, it was a moment of transformation.

A moment when I saw my journey differently.  A time when the years of effort suddenly felt illuminated.  A mountaintop moment.

And perhaps the Transfiguration story invites us to ask:  Where have we experienced clarity in the midst of confusion?

Where have we felt affirmed in the midst of doubt?   Maybe it was the moment you survived something difficult.  Maybe it was a conversation that changed your perspective or even just a quiet realisation that you are loved and held.

Not everyone believes in shining clouds and heavenly voices.  But many of us know what it feels like to have a moment when everything suddenly makes sense.  Those are our mountaintop experiences.  And they do not remove us from everyday life.  They prepare us to return to it.  Because after every mountaintop comes a descent.  Back into the ordinary.  Back into the work of caring, healing, living, loving.  But we do not go back unchanged.

Now Peter, wants to stay on the mountain. He suggests building tents.
Let’s hold onto this moment. Let’s freeze it. Let’s remain here in the clarity and the light. But the Transfiguration does not last. They must go back down the mountain.

And as soon as they come down, reality returns. There is a child in need of healing. There is confusion. There is struggle.  Matthew is telling us something important:  Mountaintop experiences are real.  They are holy.  But they are not permanent residences.  They are moments of clarity that sustain us for the journey back down into everyday life.  They remind us of who we are when we return to the ordinary.

My Viva did not mean life suddenly became easy. It did not mean ministry stopped being demanding.  It did not mean there were no more valleys.  But it gave me a glimpse.  A moment of clarity.  A reminder that the journey had purpose.  That the years of struggle had meaning.  In all honesty this was my second attempt at a Ph.D.  My first attempt took 5 years and then I had to take a break from burn out.  I had completed my field work and was writing up.  When I tried to return they said that the regulations had changed and I had to restart from the beginning.  All those years of work gone to waste.  So I walked across the road from University of Auckland to Auckland University of Technology and started again, a completely new topic.

When things become uncertain again and they will remember what you have seen.  Remember what you have heard.  Remember the light.

We all need mountaintop moments.  Moments when we glimpse hope.  Moments when we feel affirmed.  Moments when we see clearly.

But the purpose of those moments is not escape.  It is strength.

We carry the light from the mountain  back into the valleys of everyday life.

And perhaps today we are invited to ask:

Where have I experienced a mountaintop moment?
Where have I glimpsed clarity or calling?
What moments have reminded me that I am held, loved, and called?

The season of lent is upon us this week.  We will begin our 40 day journey on Ash Wednesday.  The voice that spoke on the mountain
still speaks today:

You are beloved.
Do not be afraid.
Now go back down the mountain
and continue the journey.

Amen.

Audio of selected readings and reflections

Audio of the complete service