Great Feast
The Holy Transfiguration of Our Lord
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Christ revealed His divine glory to Peter, James and John upon Mount Tabor.
Core account checked against Orthodox Church in America — The Holy Transfiguration of Our Lord, Orthodox Church in America — Transfiguration of our Lord, Orthodox Church in America — The Orthodox Faith: Transfiguration. Additional ecclesiastical references appear below.
Life and Witness
Christ Reveals His Glory
Jesus took Peter, James and John up a high mountain and was transfigured before them. His face shone, His garments became radiant, and Moses and Elijah appeared speaking with Him.
The event did not change Christ into something He was not. It allowed the disciples to behold His divine glory as far as human nature could bear.
The Voice of the Father
A bright cloud overshadowed them and the Father's voice proclaimed, ‘This is My beloved Son; listen to Him.’ The revelation confesses the Holy Trinity and the unique Sonship of Christ.
Moses and Elijah represent the Law and the Prophets, both fulfilled in the incarnate Lord. The disciples were strengthened before witnessing His voluntary Passion.
Orthodox Feast and Pilgrimage
The Church celebrates the feast with Divine Liturgy and the blessing of grapes or first fruits. The custom gives thanks for creation and points toward its transformation in the Kingdom.
Mount Tabor and the Orthodox monasteries upon it remain major pilgrimage places. August 6 — Holy Transfiguration of our Lord God and Savior Jesus Christ.
From the Orthodox Synaxarion
The Prologue from Ohrid explains that Christ disclosed His glory to the disciples according to their capacity to receive it. Moses and Elijah testify that the Lord fulfills the Law and the Prophets, while the Father’s voice reveals the beloved Son.
Historical Record and Ecclesiastical Tradition
Matthew 17:1–9, Mark 9:2–9 and Luke 9:28–36 are the controlling accounts, with 2 Peter 1:16–18 providing apostolic testimony to the divine voice. The Gospels name a high mountain but not Tabor; its identification with Mount Tabor and the feast's forty-day relation to the Cross belong to the Church's ancient liturgical and pilgrimage tradition.
Biographical information on this page is based exclusively on the Orthodox ecclesiastical sources listed below.
Orthodox Church in America — The Holy Transfiguration of Our LordOrthodox Church in America — Transfiguration of our LordOrthodox Church in America — The Orthodox Faith: TransfigurationHoly Gospels — Matthew 17, Mark 9 and Luke 9The Prologue from Ohrid — August 6