GOD’S SPLENDOR - This appearance of God’s splendor in human affairs is not an easy theme to interpret or proclaim. Moses in any case had it right (33:16): the presence of God makes Israel’s life distinctive. Indeed, God’s presence makes all creation different. Without this One of holy, dangerous splendor, life may indeed be reduced to banal control and self-indulgence, to the management of technique, the trivialization of human dignity, and the self-serving devouring of the earth . . .

MAKING ALL THINGS NEW - The steadfast witness of the synagogue and the church, of Moses and Jesus, is that Auschwitz, Hiroshima, and the gulags are not the true of decisive narrative of creation. The glory will descend in its unbearable brightness and make all things new. That glory from God is carried in the faces and persons of odd, strange human models-Moses and Jesus. This is not a summons that all should be "carriers," for those carriers are chosen only in God’s inscrutable power and freedom. It is, rather, an invitation to Aaron, to the Israelites, and to all who "behold" to notice the glory of God in the faces of those who refuse the golden calf, who stand in the breach to see the glory, and who bring the tablets and let life begin again. God’s glory is never far from God’s command, which authorizes the revamping of all of life. There is dread in the coming of this glory, but there is also inordinate, practical possibility. For all of his shining, Moses’ work is on earth with his people. [1]

We could "hear" this story in different tones - for instance, we could hear this story for our congregation that encourages us to pray, that we too, can find a place in the cleft to have our own encounter with the divine. The writer seems to connect iridescence ("glory") with the presence of God specifically during prayer.

We could also listen to this story in the larger context of hope; there are a lot of folks who haven’t a glimmer of light from above shining on their faces. They’re doing their best to make ends meet, keep the kids fed and clothed, barely providing each week. Hard to see "glory" when we’re a single parent working two jobs. Yet this story holds up a promise that God does shine into the world and that can give us great hope. God’s presence in our life makes us special.

This interesting episode of Moses’ radiant face could, of course, be interpreted through Christian lens-which is exactly what Paul does in the second lesson. He spins an interpretation that allows the Exodus passage to speak to a new group of believers who see in the face of Jesus God’s radiant light.

You could also in all fairness, stay within the passage proper and listen for what you hear it saying in view of your own Christian community. For instance, the writer is quite interested in communicating the iridescence of Moses’ face as one who has come from the presence of the Lord. Metaphorically, what might be some connections with what Moses was carrying with him (the tablets) and the radiance? What do we know about God’s character-attributes as represented in the Law and their refraction through us?

What is this story about? Abiding presence? Law-giving? Mystery? The greatness of Moses as the leader of Israel? The interplay between God’s apodictic words and the radiant presence of God? Such questions this text raises; since the meaning of this passage is not as obvious as other stories, a homily may well take an inductive route, raising carefully thought out questions with some clues thrown in before moving toward your personal "aha" moment of discovery.

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[1] The New Interpreter’s Bible I (Nashville:  Abingdon Press, 1994), n/p.