Transfiguration (religion)

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In a religious context, transfiguration, from Latin transfiguratio, is the experience of momentary divine radiance.[ citation needed ] It can function as a form of apotheosis. [1]

Contents

In the Judeo-Christian scriptures and tradition

Jesus

Jacob

In the Ladder of Jacob, at the conclusion of this instruction, instead of simply being given the new name Israel, Jacob is introduced to his heavenly counterpart, the angel Israel.[ citation needed ]

Enoch

In the Book of Enoch, when Enoch returns to Earth, he tells his children that although they see him as the earthly, human Enoch, there is likewise an angelic Enoch (Metatron) that has stood in the Lord's Presence.[ citation needed ]

Elijah

In the departure of Elijah to heaven by chariot of fire, and horses of fire and lifted up by a whirlwind to heaven.

Mary

Lumen gentium states that "the Immaculate Virgin [...] was exalted by the Lord as Queen of the universe, that she might be the more fully confirmed to her Son, the Lord of lords and the conqueror of sin and death". [2]

In Buddhism

The Buddha is said to have been twice transfigured, at the moment of his enlightenment and at the moment of his death. [3]

Related Research Articles

Lumen gentium, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, is one of the principal documents of the Second Vatican Council. This dogmatic constitution was promulgated by Pope Paul VI on 21 November 1964, following approval by the assembled bishops by a vote of 2,151 to 5. As is customary with significant Roman Catholic Church documents, it is known by its incipit, "Lumen gentium", Latin for "Light of the Nations".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Archangel</span> Second lowest rank of angel

Archangels are described as the second-lowest rank of angel in De Coelesti Hierarchia written by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite in the 5th or 6th century. The Bible itself uses the term very rarely, with no mention in the Old Testament, and does not mention a hierarchy of angels in any detail. The word is usually associated with the Abrahamic religions; similar beings exist in several other religions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metatron</span> Angel in Jewish and Islamic mythology

Metatron, or Matatron, is an angel in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Metatron is mentioned three times in the Talmud, in a few brief passages in the Aggadah, the Targum, and in mystical Kabbalistic texts within Rabbinic literature. The figure forms one of the traces for the presence of dualist proclivities in the otherwise monotheistic visions of both the Tanakh and later Christian doctrine. In Rabbinic literature, he is sometimes portrayed as serving as the celestial scribe. The name Metatron is not mentioned in the Torah or the Bible, and how the name originated is a matter of debate. In Islamic tradition, he is also known as Mīṭaṭrūn, the angel of the veil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seraph</span> Type of angel in Abrahamic religions

A seraph is a celestial or heavenly being originating in Ancient Judaism. The term plays a role in subsequent Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samael</span> Jewish archangel

Samael is an archangel in Talmudic and post-Talmudic lore; a figure who is the accuser or adversary, seducer, and destroying angel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Messiah in Judaism</span> Savior and liberator of the Jewish people

The Messiah in Judaism is a savior and liberator figure in Jewish eschatology who is believed to be the future redeemer of the Jews. The concept of messianism originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible a messiah is a king or High Priest of Israel traditionally anointed with holy anointing oil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Queen of Heaven</span> Marian title

Queen of Heaven is a title given by Christians to Mary, mother of Jesus, mainly in the Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodoxy, and, to a lesser extent, in Anglicanism and Lutheranism. The title has long been a tradition, included in prayers and devotional literature and seen in Western art in the subject of the Coronation of the Virgin from the High Middle Ages, long before the Church gave it a formal definition status.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fallen angel</span> Angel expelled from heaven in Abrahamic religions

Fallen angels are angels who were expelled from Heaven. The literal term "fallen angel" does not appear in any Abrahamic religious texts, but is used to describe angels cast out of heaven or angels who sinned. Such angels often tempt humans to sin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Book of Enoch</span> Hebrew religious text ascribed to Enoch

The Book of Enoch is an ancient Jewish apocalyptic religious text, ascribed by tradition to the patriarch Enoch who was the father of Methuselah and the great-grandfather of Noah. The Book of Enoch contains unique material on the origins of demons and Nephilim, why some angels fell from heaven, an explanation of why the Genesis flood was morally necessary, and a prophetic exposition of the thousand-year reign of the Messiah. Three books are traditionally attributed to Enoch, including the distinct works 2 Enoch and 3 Enoch. None of the three are considered to be canonical scripture by most Jewish or Christian church bodies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Churches Militant, Penitent, and Triumphant</span> Traditional divisions of the Christian Church

In some strains of Christian theology, the Christian Church may be divided into:

Sariel is an angel mainly from Judaic tradition. Other possible versions of his name are Suriel, Suriyel, Seriel, Sauriel, Saraqael, Sarakiel, Suruel, Surufel, and Souriel.

The universal call to holiness is a teaching of the Roman Catholic Church that all people are called to be holy, and is based on Matthew 5:48: "Be you therefore perfect, as also your heavenly Father is perfect". In the first book of the Bible, the call to holiness is expressed in the Lord's words to Abraham: "Walk before me, and be blameless".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Jerusalem</span> Ezekiels prophetic vision of a city centered on the rebuilt Holy Temple

In the Book of Ezekiel in the Hebrew Bible, New Jerusalem is Ezekiel's prophetic vision of a city centered on the rebuilt Holy Temple, the Third Temple, to be established in Jerusalem, which would be the capital of the Messianic Kingdom, the meeting place of the twelve tribes of Israel, during the Messianic era. The prophecy is recorded by Ezekiel as having been received on Yom Kippur of the year 3372 of the Hebrew calendar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Watcher (angel)</span> Class of angelic beings in biblical texts

A Watcher is a type of biblical angel. The word occurs in both plural and singular forms in the Book of Daniel, where reference is made to the holiness of the beings. The apocryphal Books of Enoch refer to both good and bad Watchers, with a primary focus on the rebellious ones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barachiel</span> Archangel

Barachiel, also known as Barakel, is one of the Archangels in Judaism, as well as Byzantine Catholic and Eastern Orthodox tradition. He is the Archangel of Blessings.

The Third Book of Enoch, also known as The Book of the Palaces, The Book of Rabbi Ishmael the High Priest and The Elevation of Metatron, and abbreviated as 3 Enoch) is a Jewish apocryphal book.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Entering heaven alive</span> Physically ascending into the afterlife without first experiencing corporal death

Entering heaven alive is a belief held in various religions. Since death is the normal end to an individual's life on Earth and the beginning of afterlife, entering heaven without dying first is considered exceptional and usually a sign of a deity's special recognition of the individual's piety.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seven seals</span> Part of the Revelation

The Seven Seals of God from the Bible's Book of Revelation are the seven symbolic seals that secure the book or scroll that John of Patmos saw in an apocalyptic vision. The opening of the seals of the document occurs in Rev Ch 5–8 and marks the Second Coming of the Christ and the beginning of The Apocalypse/Revelation. Upon the Lamb of God/Lion of Judah opening a seal on the cover of the book/scroll, a judgment is released or an apocalyptic event occurs. The opening of the first four Seals releases the Four Horsemen, each with his own specific mission. The opening of the fifth Seal releases the cries of martyrs for the "Word/Wrath of God". The sixth Seal prompts plagues, storms and other cataclysmic events. The seventh Seal cues seven angelic trumpeters who in turn cue the seven bowl judgments and more cataclysmic events.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Two witnesses</span> Two prophets mentioned in the Book of Revelation

The two witnesses are two literary figures who are mentioned in Revelation 11:1-14. Some Christians interpret this as two people, two groups of people, or two concepts. Some believe they are Enoch and Elijah, as in the Gospel of Nicodemus, since they are the only two that did not see death as required by the Scriptures, while others believe them to be Moses and Elijah because they appeared during the transfiguration of Jesus, or because Enoch was not Abraham's descendant. They have the power to shut the heavens (Elijah) and turn water into blood (Moses).

In some Judeo-Christian traditions, the Angel of the Presence / Face or Angel of his presence / face refers to an entity variously considered angelic or else identified with God himself.

References

  1. Hoffmann, R. Joseph (1984). Marcion, on the Restitution of Christianity: An Essay on the Development of Radical Paulinist Theology in the Second Century. Issue 46 of American Academy of Religion series, ISSN 0277-1071. Chico, California: Scholars Press. p. 137. ISBN   9780891306382 . Retrieved 29 April 2022. Marcion apparently saw the transfiguration as the apotheosis of the Unknown God [...].
  2. "Lumen gentium". www.vatican.va. Retrieved 2024-08-22.
  3. E.J. Thomas, The Life of Buddha, p245; EW Hopkins, The Message of Buddhism to Christianity, The Biblical World, Vol. 28, No. 2 (Aug., 1906), pp. 94-107