The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light;
Upon those who lived in a land of gloom a light has shone.
You have brought them abundant joy
and great rejoicing…
For a child is born to us, a son is given to us;
upon his shoulder dominion rests.
They name him Wonder-Counselor, God-Hero,
Father-Forever, Prince of Peace.
-Isaiah 9:1-2a,5
Forty years later, I still remember the darkness. It was all-pervasive in that December of 1984 in Leningrad, U.S.S.R. Aside from a short period of dawn in the late morning, day and night were the same. Dark and bitterly cold. Living through that winter gave me a new appreciation for the light I had so often taken for granted. I think of that darkness as I imagine Jesus as the Light, which Isaiah foretold: a light of power and searing warmth that transforms the darkest, coldest night into brilliant, glorious day. Jesus is the light that shines in darkness and the darkness has not overcome it. (John 1:5)
Jesus’s light also illumines dark places that had been hidden. I met recently, along with a small group of priests, with survivors of sexual abuse by clergy. These courageous people, now in middle age or older, told the horrifying stories of what had happened to them and the scars they still bore decades later. There were also empty chairs, representing those who had not survived and those who would never set foot in a church again. I was prepared to hear their anger and outrage. Certainly, it would have been justified. Instead, they shared stories of healing and redemption, and the power of Christ’s light to penetrate and transform the darkness that had been perpetrated on them. They expressed a desire for us to work with them in healing the church and those who had suffered abuse. They were a powerful witness to what God’s love is like. Although I had no part in perpetrating or concealing these crimes, I had always felt a certain guilt by association. I felt unworthy of their kindness, warmth and graciousness. And yet, that is what they offered, God’s unconditional love.
There is darkness in the world, in our lives and even in the church. Christmas reminds us that the Light of the World was born in Bethlehem and remains with us now, and always. May we draw close to him and be beacons of his light. You show me his light every day. I remain ever grateful to be your pastor.
Much love in Christ Jesus,
Fr. Jim