Transfiguration/Anglican Order of Preachers

Proper13A The Transfiguration, St. Martin’s Episcopal Church, August 6, 2023, by Sr. Annette Fricke, OP. "If you truly want to help the soul of your neighbor, you should approach God first with all your heart. Ask him simply to fill you with charity, the greatest of all virtues; with it you can accomplish what you desire." -St. Vincent Ferrer, O.P. The transfiguration has always been a mystery to me since the first time I was called upon to preach on it. I believe it’s not the toughest challenge in my life, but darn close. This is not about me and yet it is all about me because everything before us is not just about God and God’s saving grace, but how we are to access that grace and what we do with it. During our annual Chapter meeting which I attended the better portion last week, we discussed what it was like to be Episcopalian and Dominican and the various traditions we all came from. There was a common theme, and it could be summarized in the following way: ‘You are saved! That’s it!’ (pause) But what comes after that? Why do congregations die or become just a social club? For that very reason. We fail to deal with that last question. What comes after that? How do we share that faith in the world around us? And don’t put it all on the priest? Lay people and clergy alike are called to always share the gospel of God’s kingdom in all places. That is a profound difference in the Anglican Order of Preachers. We are not separated into men and women, and it is also inclusive in that membership includes married as well as unmarried, clergy as well as laity. Yes, you are also called upon to study, learn, and research ways to address the modern world as it informs evangelism. The Transfiguration, according to St. Thomas Aquinas is this: “It is a Eureka moment—one that makes a lasting impression. Jesus’ human soul and body is transfigured, communicating the clarity and the glory of his divinity is a miracle.” Instead of Jesus performing miracles pertaining to other humans, “Jesus performs a miracle on himself. Jesus’ soul and body are human and fallible like us except it is united to his divine nature. We share in the divinity of Christ in the Eucharist.” Thus, receiving the Eucharist is empowering. We receive Christ’s divinity in the Eucharist, giving us the strength to go out into the world and witness to God’s saving grace. We become like Jesus. But, in the life of a Dominican, it does not begin with evangelism, it begins with prayer. “Prayer is a reference point through which we all better know God. And for Dominicans in particular, it forms the very center of our lives and the starting place for our mission. The liturgy draws us out of ourselves, to pray with Christ and the Church and so to grow in compassion for all. The Dominican cross is flanked by the motto of Latin words meaning, “to praise, to bless, to preach (AND (not part of the Latin) to contemplate and hand on to others the fruits of contemplation.” Our bishop uses a method in our studies with the church meetings of both lay and clergy. It is the ancient method of studying the Bible which is termed Lectio Divina. Lectio Divina was the ordinary way to read the Bible even before ordinary non-clergy and non-religious community people had the chance at an education. It has these steps: “Reading. Read a passage slowly and carefully within the bible. ...Meditation. Thinking deeply or dwelling upon a spiritual reality within a text. ...Prayer. Having a loving conversation with God. Contemplation. Resting in God’s presence. Action. Go and do likewise.” My vows: “In the name of God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Recognizing the sovereignty of God, and desiring to be ever in his service, and in deeper fulfillment of my Baptismal vows, I now come before the Divine Majesty and before you my Brothers and Sisters, most solemnly to make a humble profession of my Life Vows. Before God the Creator, Redeemer, and Sanctifier, I vow, for the rest of my earthly life, to carry out in my life the love and example of Jesus Christ as understood by the Anglican Order of Preachers. Specifically, I vow: -To be obedient to Almighty God by placing myself under the authority of the Anglican Order of Preachers and the direction of my superiors in the Order. -To be chaste and pure according to my state of life being unmarried. -To live simply, not going after gain of temporal things, but using all things given to my charge for the building of the Kingdom of God. -To be diligent in the reading and study of the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments; to uphold their authority, and to seek to understand them in the light of the Holy Spirit; to proclaim the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, by word and example, unto the salvation of souls and building up of the Church, the Body of Christ. -To be diligent in regular and catholic prayer; for intercession for the Church and for the world before God, for the strengthening of my faith, and for the formation of my soul.” “If you truly want to help the soul of your neighbor, you should approach God first with all your heart. Ask him simply to fill you with charity, the greatest of all virtues; with it you can accomplish what you desire." -St. Vincent Ferrer, O.P.