Some years ago, a friend of mine invited me up to Paramin on the weekend of the annual “Great Race” to view the race. The journey from the foot of the Paramin Hill up to where he lived was a harrowing experience.

The road was narrow and winding, the ascent was steep. To me it appeared to be vertical. With steep precipices on both sides of the road, I really had to “hand my life” over to him as he navigated his way up the hill that Friday evening.

On the Saturday morning of the race, he woke me at 4.30 a.m. for us to go to the spot where we would view the race. At 4.30 a.m. Paramin is very, very cold and it was a long two-hour trek through the bushes of Paramin to arrive at the “spot.” In spite of the difficulty of the journey, I again “left my life” in my friends hands.

Eventually at 8.00 that morning the race began and it was the most beautiful and memorable sporting experience I have ever had. From our vantage point I was able, with my naked eyes to view the boat race in its entirety from start to finish, something I would never have experienced if I hadn't accepted my friend's invitation to come up to Paramin or “left my life in his hands on the journey up the hill.

In today's gospel the disciples of Jesus – Peter, James and John had a similar experience with Jesus. The transfiguration of Jesus must have been for them the most remarkable and memorable experience since their first encounter with him.

Yet had they not gone up the mountain with him, had they not left their lives in his hands on the journey, they would have missed out on the transfiguration experience that had a profound effect on their future relationship with Jesus.

From their initial encounter, when Jesus called them to follow him Peter James and John would have through all the experience shared with Jesus gradually come to the point of knowing that he was the Son of God.

At his transfiguration that knowledge would have been confirmed and completed as they saw Jesus talking to Moses (representing the Law) and Elijah (representing the Prophets).

Had they not entrusted themselves into the care of Jesus as he led them up the mountain, that knowledge of who Jesus really was would not have been confirmed and completed.

One of the invitations of today's Gospel, as we continue our Lenten journey, is for us as individuals, parish communities and archdiocese to be always open to the experience of going up the mountain with Jesus. To the extent that we allow ourselves to do so, is the extent to which we will come into a complete understanding of who he really is.

As we reflect on today's Gospel let us remember and celebrate all those times when as individuals, as a parish community and as Church we willingly accepted the invitation to go up the mountain and because of that willingness, experienced a deep spiritual event.

Over the last two years the archdiocese, through the synod sessions have lived the truth of the transfiguration experience. None of us as delegates to the synod or the thousands more in our parishes knew when we gathered for the first session of the synod, discussed the many issues before us, passed resolutions, began the process of implementation, met again in a second session to celebrate our successes and acknowledge our failures, knew what the full experience would be like.

But we all willingly accepted the invitation and remained committed to the journey. In the process we have come into a more complete understanding of our relationship with God and our world. It is an understanding we would have denied ourselves if we had not begun the journey up to the mountain.

Similarly, as we reflect on our lives in light of the Gospel we realise, with regret, the many lost opportunities to come to full understanding because we either did not accept the invitation or did not complete the journey “up the mountain” with Jesus.

Lord, we thank you for all the transfiguration moments of our lives.

•  We took time to enter into friendships and remained committed to them until their true value was revealed to us.

•  We remained committed to life in our parish community even through difficult times and eventually experienced the truth of God through life in the community. At those moments, like Peter, we realised that “it is so good to be here”.

Lord, we ask forgiveness for the many times when we failed to accept your invitation to “come up the mountain” or did not trust you enough to continue the journey with you.

•  We distanced ourselves from difficult situations, refusing to get involved.

•  We ended relationships because they made too may demands on us.

•  We abandoned our life vocation at the time of our first difficulty.

Give us the grace, even as you forgive us, so that we will be able to continue all future journeys with your to the place where you will lead us to a deep truth .

Gospel Meditations for February are by Glen Cazoe, a member of the Maloney Parish Council and chairman of the Spirituality Committee.