Light: Saturday
There’s an innate craving to be safe in the darkness. It has an enwombing quality about it. So I love to pray in our chapel when there’s just the whisper of light coming from a votive candle. It’s a very safe, nurturing space. Most of us choose to sleep in the dark, and that’s full of meaning: it’s how we began our life in our mother’s womb, and it’s how we restore our life, day by day.
– Br. Curtis Almquist, SSJE
Way of Love: Daily Practice
Light a candle. Dwell in the presence of God.
Share your experience in the comments below
All of these reflections on light and darkness have been so helpful to me at this time. For months I repeatedly
listened to 1 John 1. I understood there was meaning in those words I have memorized as a child. They are part of the Catholic Mass. When I got the Lenten videos identifying spirituality through light and darkness I felt God was opening up my spiritual understanding. Many thanks!
Today’s comment makes me reflect on the beautiful darkness I experience at our cottage, deep in the woods, and close to the lake. The darkness of night there is soft and peaceful . On clear nights, I can see the stars spread across the sky, and in its cycle, the moon illuminates everything with its soft light. I feel safe and secure going to sleep there, to the soft murmur of the lake, and sometimes to the wild calls of the loons or the hooting of the owls. God’s creation is so beautiful and diverse! I also know that while I’m sleeping, other creatures are enjoying their time of activity in the nighttime.
Darkness in the city is different, though – it is not complete, as there is always artificial light. I also know that the city at night can be dangerous and elicit fear.
However, as followers of Jesus, we can always trust in God to keep us safe in physical or metaphorical darkness. As Psalm 139 says, “even the darkness will not be dark to you, the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you”. NIV.