Daily Light: Reflections for Holy Times: A Shining Light
A Shining Light
“…the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light. And for those who lived in the land where death casts its shadow, a light has shined.”
- Matthew 4:16
I have soul card leaning against the back of my computer cabinet If you do not know what a soul card is, it is a collage made from photos clipped from magazines. The pictures chosen are not just any old pictures, but artwork that speaks to one’s own heart and soul.
In the forefront of my soul card, a girl of about ten years of age sits at school, a pencil in her hand, staring off into the distance. She looks shell shocked. Next to her is a quote: “Decide now. Is your life going to be poetry or prose?” My sense at the time was that the child represented my own experience of childhood. Shell shocked and overwhelmed. The quote reminded me of an old expectation on the part of my mother. She wanted me to become an author. “Fat chance!” I thought.
Yet in spite of myself, I am. One of the gifts of writing is that putting pen to paper helps me process the stuff of my life.
All of us, I think need ways to process what is going on for us today. I wonder whether, in this Season of 2020 Sadness, everyone night be considered an ‘author’. Not because we all write our stories out, but because our stories might be written on our hearts. As 2020 draws to a close, my guess is that there are a number of sorrowful stories out there. So where do we find hope?
Many of us will turn to our faith tradition, and for me this means looking for hope in the face of Jesus.
When Matthew talks about the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, he quotes from the Book of Isaiah. “…for those who lived in the land where death casts where death casts its shadow, a light has shined.”
n Isaiah’s time, there had been a heaviness for many Jews and Isaiah proclaimed hope. In Jesus’ day, the weight of oppression bowed down the shoulders of most Jews. The words of Isaiah served to remind the faithful of Jesus day, that there was light in the darkness; good news in the midst of communal pain. Matthew says to Christians “the light has shined, and is shining right now, even though pain and suffering are real. God is at work.
Matthew’s words give me hope, because they speak of the light God’s presence beginning under the veil of darkness, sin, and suffering. God chooses to show up when things are at their worst. As a Christian, my hope comes from the belief that God became human, showing up when things were—and are, at their worst, Holy presence shows up for suffering humanity. This is what hope looks like, for me when I enter my own doorway into the presence of the Divine, seeking hope.
The beauty of Retreat House is that we are not a monolith. A core principle of our community is that all faith traditions are fully welcomed, finding beauty in diversity. I still have not figured out how it is that my own Christian faith is strengthened as I encounter friends from the Muslim, Sufi Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh and Indigenous faith traditions, but it is so. My experience of my own faith tradition is somehow deepened by the diverse traditions that surround me.
I draw comfort from a God who shows up, present and hidden in the midst of weakness. What does the light of hope look like, in the midst of human pain, as you enter through the doorway of the tradition that you hold most dear? How are the stories written on your hearts gift to our community? Where does the light shine for you?
At the end of the day, sadness and suffering are equal opportunity employers. But so is the presence of the Holy. And the experience of hope, joy, light and peace as we head towards the darkest day of the calendar year. How can we be hope, joy light and peace for one another, upheld by the Divine and each other as we turn the page on the year 2020?
Jackie Linden-Schade
Spiritual Director
Author