Monsignor Enrique Díaz Díaz shares with Exaudi readers his reflection on the  Gospel of this Sunday, March 1, 2026,   entitled:  “His face shone like the sun . ”

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Genesis 12:1-4:  “Leave your country and go to the land I will show you.”

Psalm 32:  “Lord, have mercy on us”

1 Timothy 1:8-10:  “God has called us to consecrate our lives to him”

Matthew 17:1-9: “ His face shone like the sun”

Today’s readings present Lent, and the life of the believer, as an enthusiastic quest, a constant restlessness, and a perpetual striving toward an ideal: the encounter with God and his Kingdom. From the words addressed to Abram, demanding that he leave his country and his relatives, or Paul’s recommendations to Timothy reminding him that God has called us to consecrate our lives to him, to Jesus’ words to his disciples, not allowing them to remain merely in contemplation, but commanding them, ” Get up,”  everything is a dynamic of searching and restlessness that should ignite the spirit of the believer. It would seem that God has a special predilection for words that move and motivate:  “Leave your home,” “Follow me,” “Get up.”   And we, who always seek security, cling to our possessions, and chain ourselves to our own ideas. All the words of today instill in us the enthusiasm to set out on our journey and begin our search.

When we see Abram settled in his homeland, with his possessions and family, it’s difficult to understand why he was so enthusiastic and why, leaving everything behind, he set out in search of the promised land, sustained only by the words of a God who had set him on his journey. In his search for a new land, he was sustained only by his faith. He is a model for every Christian who sets out on an adventure and seeks the ideal revealed through an encounter with God. Today, modern man, who claims to be freer than ever, finds himself bloated with possessions and false illusions that sacrifice his freedom, conscience, and authenticity. The chains of technology, conformity, and comfort have so ensnared our lives that we don’t even remember that there are better options, as long as we remain comfortable. We don’t look at the stars for fear of the darkness, of the risks of the open field, and we prefer to stay sheltered within our four walls. It’s true, there are many risks along the way, but they are worthwhile when we seek new ideals. Let us not remain indifferent and complacent while the Lord invites us to build a home for all, to seek a new land of brothers and sisters. The true Christian is revealed by his enthusiasm and zeal, by his fervor and dedication in listening to the Word that invites and challenges him. He is the person of faith who believes in the God of the promises and places all his hope in Him.

This same faith is what Jesus asks of his disciples. Not the faith that protects and covers like a cloak, but the faith that accepts risk and adventure. Like Abram, who left his possessions and took faith as his compass and star, who abandoned his earthly reasons and trusted in the promises, Jesus now asks his disciples for a new adventure in building his Kingdom. He has announced his passion and death. He has set new and radical conditions for following him. But he does not leave them in the dark and allows them to glimpse the reasons for these demands. In his transfiguration, God himself speaks and gives his word to confirm Jesus’ path. The transfiguration is an event that seeks to encourage and reorient the disciples, so eager to seek positions of prominence and so reluctant to embrace the cross. It manifests the glory of Jesus and anticipates his victory over the cross. But the transfiguration is not intended to lull the disciples to sleep or assure them of an earthly triumph. And when Peter, in the ecstasy of contemplation, proposes to remain on the heights, contemplating Jesus’ triumph, he is abruptly awakened and invited to rise without fear. The Transfiguration reveals the mysterious and profound meaning of Jesus’ life, but it does not allow the disciples to remain in contemplation and abandon the cross. They must return to reality. And this is also the reality of the disciple today: one cannot remain indifferent on the mountaintop. One can climb the mountain, be filled with God in order to discern, discover his will, and fill one’s heart with enthusiasm, but not to distance oneself from one’s commitment to others.

The path to resurrection always passes through the way of the cross, and the Transfiguration reveals its true meaning to us. The voice from heaven commands the disciples to trust in Jesus’ word:  “This is my Son… listen to him.”  Thus, trusting in the Word, they will find the strength to descend the mountain and walk with the Master the way of the cross. The message is also for us: one cannot be a true disciple who isolates himself from his brothers and sisters and settles comfortably into life, soothing his conscience with spiritualistic visions. To distance oneself from commitment to others and to evade service to the most needy is not a truly Christian experience. The only way to listen to Jesus is by taking up his very path: to walk and learn with Jesus; to walk and see with Jesus; to walk and discover our brothers and sisters alongside Jesus. Peter, who has discovered glory and been enraptured in contemplation, now has even more reason to follow Jesus without becoming complacent. On this day, let us ascend the mountain with Jesus, contemplate the transformation and beauty of his face, listen to the voice of the Father, and then rise, ready to carry the cross with Jesus. Today we are called to examine whether we have purified our hearts and intentions. He sets before us the ideal so that we do not lose our way, he shows us the radiant face of Jesus, but then he invites us to accompany him on the journey of each day, in working with our brothers and sisters, in the daily burden of the cross.

What are we doing this Lent that will truly lead us to abandon indifference and change our hearts? Have we settled into complacency and become complacent in our comforts? Does the vision of a glorious and radiant Christ commit us to seeking a more human face in each of our brothers and sisters?

Lord, Holy Father, who commands us to listen to your beloved Son, awaken us from our indifference and purify our eyes so that, contemplating the glorious Christ, we may commit ourselves to discovering his face in each of our brothers and sisters. Amen