“Who is this who was born in Bethlehem and now is steadfastly headed for Jerusalem? This is the one who by being crucified and raised will fulfill all that the scriptures have promised. Before the curtain goes up on the action of a dramatic opera, the orchestra plays an overture that hints at the musical themes to follow; so just before the opening of Lent, the transfiguration presents subtle clues to the content of the Forty Days of Devotion and Discipline and the Great Fifty Days of rejoicing that follow.” – Laurence Hull Stookey, Calendar: Christ’s Time for the Church, 137.