The following passages are all taken from the New World Translation.
Matthew 17:1
– "Six days later Jesus took Peter and James and John his brother along and brought them up into a lofty mountain by themselves."Mark 9:2
– "Accordingly six days later Jesus took Peter and James and John along , and brought them up into a lofty mountain to themselves alone. And he was transfigured before them."Luke 9:28, 29
– In actual fact, about eight days after these words, he took Peter and John and James along and climbed up into the mountain to pray. And as he was praying the appearance of his face became different and his apparel became glitteringly white."Now we’re probably all familiar with these accounts of how Jesus was said to be transfigured alongside Moses and Elijah before the apostles mentioned above. But please note that of the four Gospel writers only John was present before this monumental event – the only event of its kind that has ever occurred – and yet John writes absolutely NOTHING about it. The three Gospel writers Matthew, Mark and Luke, who AREN’T there, DO write about it!!
Don’t you think it strange that after witnessing a major faith-strengthening event John shouldn’t even mention it?
Ah, but Peter was there, one might counter.
Well, actually, the only "reference" by Peter, is in 2 Peter 1:16-18 wherein it states: " ……it was by having become eyewitnesses of his magnificence. For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when words such as these were borne to him by the magnificent glory: "This is my son, my beloved, whom I myself have approved." Yes, these words we heard borne from heaven while we were with him in the holy mountain."
So, only Peter actually provides a "genuine eye-witness" account ---------- or does he?
2 Peter is commonly held to be pseudepigraphal in nature. Pseudonymity is the practice of writing under someone else’s name; this is not simply a "pen name," as we have today, but it is the deliberate taking of a real person’s name for the purpose of influence in publication. However, there is no proof that the book wasn’t penned by Peter – but previous to 170 CE nothing was heard of the book and it wasn’t generally known until the 3 rd Century (Westcott, Canon, 242 (222)). Therefore, it is an extremely questionable document.
It is also worth bearing in mind that the books of the Christian Greek scriptures or New Testament which have NO KNOWN AUTHORS are: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Ephesians, Colossians, 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, Hebrews, James, 2 Peter, 2 John, 3 John, Jude and probably Revelation. As we can see, the Gospels weren’t even written by the men attributed to them!
All things considered, I think we can safely say the transfiguration has no basis in fact.
Dansk