Our Bibles consistently use the noun 'Transfiguration' with regard to Jesus but 'Transformation' with regard to the Christian - and yet it is one and the same verb, transliterated 'metamorphosed, ' that is used in those places in the original text. Why is that so? Is there an important difference between them? And why does the noun 'metamorphosis' which is familiar to us never occur in the New Testament? And yet is there some connection between the Transfiguration of Jesus and the Transformation of the Christian? Hywel R. Jones presents answers to these questions in this book. In the course of doing so he shows how the divine can penetrate the human without destroying it as in the Person of Christ, and how the human can become conformed to the divine without its ceasing to be human as in the case of the Christian. That kind of metamorphosis accords and exalts the Christian gospel over against the humanism of our culture, whether secularised or spiritualised. There is a distinction between God and Man which will never be obliterated but preserved for ever - even in the glorified Christ in whom they are joined. But communion between the God-Man and his believing people will result in each Christian being fully conformed to the perfect humanity of Christ while retaining his or her own individuality. It will not result in a faceless absorption into the divine but face to face communion with the triune God for ever. 'The transfiguration of Christ shows how the divine can penetrate the human without destroying it. The transformation of the believer shows how the human can become conformed to the divine without its ceasing to be human. This is the ultimate metamorphosis that is compatible with Christian truth.' -- HYWEL R. JONES

Revision of the author's thesis (Th.D.)--Harvard University, 2008.

It is puzzling that hardly anyone knows about the kingly transfiguration of Jesus appearing in his divine glory, which was truly a revelation along with Moses, the lawgiver and Elijah, the prophet. The event includes all the essential parts of the future kingdom to be set up by Jesus. This is surely the complete fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy. What a joyous event this was!

The NIV is the world's best-selling modern translation, with over 150 million copies in print since its first full publication in 1978. This highly accurate and smooth-reading version of the Bible in modern English has the largest library of printed and electronic support material of any modern translation.

The biblical story of Jesus' Transfiguration ""on a high mountain"" bristles with meanings germane to present-day concerns and spiritual longings. Together with its later artistic representations, this episode from the synoptic gospels seizes the imagination as an icon of mystical hope, beauty, and possibility. What might such an iconic episode, long honored liturgically in the Eastern church, disclose not only about Jesus, but also about the prospect of seeing our human nature transformed? And as interpreted by Christian tradition since the patristic era, what might it tell us about the worth of envisioning not just a conservation or preservation of natural resources but a transfiguration of all creation, and about how this ""feast of beauty"" could re-energize current discussions of Christianity's relation to environmental attitudes and policy? Such questions are addressed in this book through an original blend of personal reflection with commentary on relevant theological and scriptural texts, literary works, music, and art. ""John Gatta demonstrates in a masterful way how the Transfiguration, largely ignored by modernist theologians of a secularizing mindset, is in fact an organizing principle that bridges the immanence of this world with the transcendence of that which is to come . . . Firmly rooted in the wisdom of the writers of the early church, the message of this book brings us all the way forward to strikingly modern concerns for the environment, ecology, elevated levels of consciousness, and the transformation of society. Especially noteworthy are the author's calls for enhanced liturgical commemoration of this feast as well as for its recognition as the proper Christian counterpart of Earth Day."" --J. Robert Wright St. Mark's Professor of Ecclesiastical History General Theological Seminary, New York City ""In this wise and beautifully written book, John Gatta leads us up the mount of Transfiguration where, drawing on literature, music, science, art, and a rich Trinitarian theology, he helps us enter anew into the astonishing promise that Christ's glorification holds for us and for the whole creation. It is in the transfigured Christ, he argues, that we behold most clearly our kinship with the community of life, and it is in him that we shall find the inspiration to begin the hard work of individual, corporate, and environmental transformation. This is a summons to be heeded and Gatta's book is one to be treasured."" --John Orens author of Stewart Headlam's Radical Anglicanism: The Mass, the Masses, and the Music Hall John Gatta is Professor of English and Dean of the College at Sewanee: The University of the South. His publications include Making Nature Sacred: Literature, Religion, and Environment in America from the Puritans to the Present ( 2004), together with other books and numerous articles.

It is puzzling that hardly anyone knows about the kingly transfiguration of Jesus appearing in his divine glory, which was truly a revelation along with Moses, the lawgiver and Elijah, the prophet. The event includes all the essential parts of the future kingdom to be set up by Jesus. This is surely the complete fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy. What a joyous event this was!

Can Orthodox Christianity offer unique spiritual resources especially suited to the environmental concerns of today? This book makes the case that yes, it can. In addition to being the first substantial and comprehensive collection of essays, in any language, to address environmental issues from the Orthodox point of view, this volume with contributions from the most highly influential theologians and philosophers in contemporary world Orthodoxy will engage a wide audience, in academic as well as popular circles--resonating not only with Orthodox audiences but with all those in search of a fresh approach to environmental theory and ethics that can bring the resources of ancient spirituality to bear on modern challenges.

"This book taps the vein of the blending of theology and art in the Middle Ages, in particular, the evolution of the imagery and theology surrounding the Transfiguration Of Christ. In this well-researched volume, Andreas Andreopoulos discusses in detail every philosophical and ritual application of the Transfiguration icon - the mountain, the cloud, the mandorla, the positioning of the apostles, the Old Testament prophets, and the image of Christ himself - taking the reader through an illustrated historical journey. The author simplifies the complex relationship between the dogma of the church fathers and Byzantine art and makes it understandable to a non-specialist audience. Nevertheless, theologians, historians, and art historians alike will appreciate the interdisciplinary value of this clearly presented documentation. Andreopoulos's expert use of patristic texts and Jewish sources, as well as the New Testament and apocryphal writings and pagan sources, elucidates the development of art and doctrine that surround this scriptural epiphany."--BOOK JACKET.

This book provides a stunning and revelatory overview of the causes behind the current world upheaval, and the immediate and long term goals of a well-developed Plan for the transfiguration of our world. It explains how the world is being guided by a co-creative effort of humanity and an interdimensional Light Alliance who are together transforming.