Sermon: "Revelation: A Window to God and a Mirror for Self"
The Right Reverend Charles G. vonRosenberg
Third Bishop of East Tennessee

[This week's sermon by Bishop vonRosenberg was delivered using the following notes.]

Human beings - made in the image of God - gain glimpses of who we are called to be through the experience of revelation. That is to say, in revelation, God may be revealed in wonderful ways - but something about ourselves can be revealed as well. Our readings today call us to consider the very important theme of revelation in the Bible - and in our own lives.

Occasions of revelation are those times in which God reveals Himself in some way … circumstances in which God becomes known … situations through which God and the reality of self come into more precise focus. Moments of revelation accomplish such wonders as those.

Elijah on Mt. Horeb …

You remember that dramatic encounter…God was not known in the great wind, or in the earthquake, or in the fire.

Rather, God became known - God was revealed - in the "sound of sheer silence". In that silence, Elijah encountered God … and he confronted himself as well, we may be certain.

Jesus on another mountaintop with Peter, James, and John

Jesus was transfigured - ie. he was revealed in his glory that was to be. On that mountaintop, Jesus was joined by two others who had already gone to glory - Moses and Elijah, representing the Law and the Prophets.

The close disciples of Jesus did not understand. In fact, Peter, even offered to build three dwellings or booths because "he did not know what to say."

On that mountaintop, Peter, James, and John had a preview of what was to be - Jesus revealed in his resurrection glory, even before the time of his crucifixion. Thus, those three disciples learned some new and important things about Jesus that day … and, although we don't read much about it, I imagine they confronted some things about themselves, too.

Profound moments of revelation, these two events from our readings today.

Let me share with you a personal story of revelation now…one which fits the pattern I've suggested. I learned about God in this encounter - and, I confronted something of significance about myself as well.

Four years ago last Thursday I was ordained and consecrated bishop. Two of the people who enjoyed that event the most were my mother and father, who were there and participated in the service. The next day, I was seated in the cathedral as Bishop of East Tennessee. And, about three days later - almost exactly four years ago today - I went to my first House of Bishops' meeting! Now, it's important to add to this story that I was sick at the time. And so, at many levels, it was an unreal several days, to say the least!

Anyway, I flew off to Houston and then, boarded a bus to travel out into the wilds of Texas, to Camp Allen, which was 45 minutes or an hour away. At the first general session of our meeting, Presiding Bishop Griswold offered us a meditation - a very timely one for me - on the necessity of being aware that we are loved in order to fulfill our vocation as bishop. That's true, I believe, of other vocations as well.

Bishop Griswold then challenged us to leave the room, find a quiet place, and think about the first experience we could remember of being loved - the very first of our lives. Well, I left the room on my way to a quiet place - but I saw a map of the Diocese of Texas on the wall. So I thought I'd figure out where in the world I was. I looked and I discovered Camp Allen on the map. And then, my eyes fell on two of the towns closest to this place of our meeting - Sealy and Bellville. And those two towns were the places where my parents grew up! Suddenly and unexpectedly, I was flooded with the awareness of being loved.

May we give thanks to God for those moments of revelation in our lives … those times in which we know in a profound way that God is present … those times, also, in which we confront a very significant reality about ourselves. Revelation in the sheer silence of our lives, revelation in the transfiguring of a person right before our eyes as we suddenly see and know them differently, revelation in the awareness of being loved in the deep places of our very being - such moments are wonderful gifts to us. Thanks be to God for them! Amen.

Copyright © 2003 The Episcopal Diocese of East Tennessee