The Life-Light Blazed out of the Darkness
Singing "Silent Night" by candlelight at the late service on Christmas Eve touches my soul deeply and moves me to tears every year. As the lights are turned off in the church, everyone gets their candles ready. A handful of candles are lit in the front of the darkened church, and it is a magnificent sight to watch the light as it is passed from one person to the next, until each person's candle is lit. Only then do we unite our voices in singing the beloved hymn "Silent Night." Sometimes the organ or piano stops entirely, and those gathered sing a verse without accompaniment, creating a true choir of angels.
In the first chapter of the Gospel of John, the birth of Jesus is referred to in this way, and here I quote a modern translation known as The Message, "What came into existence was Life, and the Life was Light to live by. The Life-Light blazed out of the darkness; the darkness couldn't put it out." Seeing two hundred candles shining their light in the midst of a dark church on Christmas Eve is a testament to the power of the Light of Love to cast out the darkness in our world.
In the northern hemisphere, it will soon be the darkest day of the year. Shortly after this darkest day, Jews will begin the celebration of Hanukkah, and a few days after that, Christians will celebrate Christmas. It is worth noting that, central to the celebrations of both Hanukkah and Christmas is a witness to the power of a light that cannot be extinguished.
The holidays are a hard time of year for many. Darkness can be experienced in many forms—grief, loss, anxiety, financial strain, loneliness, and the feeling that we are only the ones who are not having a joyous holiday celebration this year. Darkness is real and needs to be acknowledged, for it is in the midst of that darkness that the true meaning of Christmas becomes real, the Light of Love is always stronger than the power of darkness.
Occasionally during the singing of "Silent Night," a draft may cause one's candle to go out. Not to worry, though, because the person next to them will patiently and without question simply relight their candle. This provides a beautiful metaphor for those of us who will soon be celebrating Christmas, inviting us to think of people whose candle could use some support as they rekindle their lives, ones we could reach out to, patiently and without question, this year.
We at Living Compass wish our Jewish readers a Happy Hanukkah, and our Christian readers a Merry Christmas. May the Light of Love be rekindled for you and those you love, and shine for all the whole year long.
**I will be taking time off next week for the holidays and so this column will return in two weeks.
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