About the Cover

The Gospels tell us that Jesus was "transfigured" before the disciples as they looked on. Transfiguration, as defined in our day, is "a complete change of form or appearance into something more beautiful or spiritual" Surely the disciples would have been startled, even disturbed by the incident. Try to imagine it. How would you react? Can you even place yourself solidly into the scene in your imagination? For centuries artists have attempted to do it, depicting the Transfiguration in iconography and art, from realistic interpretations to abstract. Paulo Medina (www.flickr.com/photos/colaterales) employs impressionism for his Transfiguration, a fitting style given the difficulty we face trying to imagine the experience for ourselves.

Impressionism seeks to capture the feeling or experience of a moment, especially in the way light shifts to create a visual impression. "Dazzling white" light is one of the first things that comes to mind when we imagine Christ's trans-figuration. Medina's use of impasto (laying paint thickly to create texture, light, and shadow) for the figures of Christ and the disciples gives a sense of dimension to their bodies.

The light that radiates smoothly from Christ's garments is so intense it appears to throw off flames of bright yellow. We have entered the scene just as the disciples first see their teacher's transfigured form. One stands stunned (is it Peter?), and the other two are knocked to their knees. Medina allows us to stay in that one moment, a split second in time, transfixed along with the disciples. But, alas, we too must ultimately return down the mountain. Yet we need not keep the matter to ourselves. Rather, it is our duty to go out and proclaim our own experience of Christ to the world

Br. Ælred Senna