The Longest Night
“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.” (John 1:5)
Guest Writer: Paula Franck
The contrast between light and darkness is a familiar theme in spiritual life – especially during Advent and Christmas. Darkness represents sin, ignorance, and the absence of God, whereas light calls forth life-giving images of God’s glorious presence. In the Gospel of John, Jesus proclaims, “I am the light of the world.” (Jn 8:12).
However, there is a natural rhythm of light and darkness, night and day, and, as Barbara Brown Taylor explains in Learning to Walk in the Dark (HarperOne, 2014), much we can learn from the dark. “Darkness is shorthand for anything that scares me – either because I am sure I do not have the resources to survive or because I do not want to find out. If I had my way, I would eliminate everything from chronic back pain to the fear of the devil from my life and the lives of those I love. At least, I think I would.
The problem is this: when, despite all my best efforts, the lights have gone off in my life, plunging me into the kind of darkness that turns my knees to water, I have not died. The monsters have not dragged me out of bed and taken me back to their lair. Instead, I have learned things in the dark that I could never have learned in the light, things that have saved my life over and over again, so that there is only one logical conclusion. I need darkness as much as I need light.”
Much happens in the dark. In Genesis, “darkness covered the face of the deep” (1:2) until God separated the light from the dark. Seeds germinate underground; babies grow in the darkness of the womb; the Resurrection happened in the darkness before sunrise on Easter morning. Thus, no matter how dark circumstances in our lives may seem, there is the potential for new life to spring forth out of that darkness. Madeline L’Engle reminds us: “Maybe you have to know the darkness before you can appreciate the light.”
December 21 is the Winter Solstice – the longest night of the year and the beginning of winter. But just when we experience the darkest night, the days once again begin to become longer. This rebirth of the sun has been celebrated since ancient times across cultures worldwide. On the Julian calendar, the winter solstice was always observed on December 25. Thus, the early Christian church chose that date to commemorate the birth of God’s son, who would be a “light to the world.”
Thus, in all life circumstances, we can rely on the promise inherent in the Incarnation: “In him, there is no darkness at all. The night and the day are both alike.” (Hymnbook 1982, The Church Pension Fund, 1985).
Paula Franck
Longest Night Service
Saint Mark’s observed a special healing Holy Eucharist last night on Saturday, December 20th, at 6:00 p.m., for all those who are experiencing grief, suffering from mental or physical illnesses, or are simply less than jolly around Christmas.
Joanna. joannaseibert.com