The book is out! Thank you to all our subscribers—many of you played a part in making this happen. Almost two years ago, I released the first draft of The Kiss of Christ month by month in article form, receiving very helpful feedback along the way. Later, as the project took shape, many of you even helped with some details on the cover design.
It’s that cover I want to draw your attention to as we prepare for the September issue. You’ll notice the butterfly with music notes rising from flames upon its wings. This imagery points to a theme that emerged quite organically in this month’s collection: transfiguration.
Some of you may know that the word transfiguration in Greek is metamorphoō—the root of our word metamorphosis.The transformation of a caterpillar into a butterfly speaks powerfully to the promise of the human soul. It also paints a poignant picture of the church’s destiny. Just as the caterpillar must leave behind its cocoon, the church is being called out of earthbound, caterpillar-like structures—“old wineskins”—and into the Spirit-led life of the butterfly, carried on the breeze of the Spirit. In the same way, each of us is destined to step into our full freedom and beauty in Christ.
This summer, I had an encounter with the Lord that opened up fresh revelation about the Transfiguration, which I share in this month’s cover article. Following that is another piece from The Walking Stick Journal, which lines up amazingly with the heart of what I wrote, even though I hadn’t communicated anything about a theme for this month.
Next is a piece from Dylan that also echoed these same truths in its own way.
After that come two more articles I wrote to develop the theme of Transfiguration further. The first, Two Visions of the Human Journey, engages with certain Eastern ideas that have influenced Christian thought and explains why the Gospel’s vision of transfiguration surpasses concepts like Nirvana. Finally, for those who want to go deeper, I’ve included a substantial excerpt from Eden’s Return, the last volume of The Song of the Ages series. This chapter—The Transfiguration of the Cosmos, Pt. 1—offers a broader biblical foundation for what you’ll encounter in this issue.
Once again, thank you to our subscribers for your encouragement and support throughout this journey. Truly, without the Elisha’s Riddle community, this book would not have come together the way it has.
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