It is a curious coincidence that on the Day of the Holy Transfiguration.
On the day when the Christian Church celebrates the event
Where Jesus revealed himself as the Son of God with Moses and Elijah
To his followers: Peter, James, and John.
When he had shown himself to be in the blinding light and Glory of God;
So they had to turn their faces away from the brilliance;
On that day August 6,
In 1945
Is when the first Atomic Bomb
Was exploded over Hiroshima.
And Thousands
Of observers
On the ground,
Looking up,
Were blinded,
By the brilliance
Of that light.
Copyright©2014 William Schaeffer
It is interesting to note that August 6 is exactly six months opposite of January 6; which is the traditional Western date for the last day of Christmas and the visit of the Three Wise Men. In the Orthodox Church, Christmas is celebrated on January 6.
ReplyDeleteIn this way, the Birth and the Transfiguration become the extreme points or "reference events" for the rest of the whole cycle of the year.
August 6 is seven months after January 6. Silly boy.
ReplyDeleteThe events still frame the year.
Alan Watts wrote a seminal work called "Myth and Ritual in Christianity" where he discusses this idea with much more intelligence and eloquence than I can.