Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke this prophecy: “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has looked favorably on his people and redeemed them. He has raised up a mighty savior for us in the house of his servant David, as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us. Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors, and has remembered his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham, to grant us that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies, might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of their sins. By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.” The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day he appeared publicly to Israel.
-Luke 1:67-80 NRSVUE
Beauteous Light
In my time in Oklahoma, I’ve started to develop a number of personal practices. One of them is, whenever I am at St. Crispin’s, to spend a little time in the morning, looking out onto the lake at sunrise.
It’s so beautiful, and the view is so different, depending on the season. Some mornings, the fog is hovering over the face of the water. Other mornings, the sun is reflected so brightly in the lake that it almost looks like a second sun. The wonder and variety of God’s creation never disappoint.
As we come to the end of Advent, with Christmas upon us, I am thinking of the imagery of light in this season. In God’s creation at this time of year in Oklahoma, the darkness is pervasive. We’ve just passed the longest night of the year. The evenings are so dark, so early.
But the Holy Scriptures speak of the promised birth of the Messiah as light: “the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
The light of God was not just a temporary illumination in the dark skies of Bethlehem that first Christmas. The light of God is with us still. Every Christmas, we recall that this light comes to all of us who sit in darkness.
It is not a light we can create ourselves, by our own will or abilities or virtue, but is freely given to us, as grace, by our loving God. And this light is for a purpose: to guide our feet into the way of peace. Light helps us see where God would have us go, individually and collectively, and helps protect us from stumbling.
Recently, on one of my Sunday visitations, I had the joy of baptizing 5 young people. One of my favorite moments of baptism is lighting the baptismal candle from the paschal candle, and giving it to the newly baptized. One little girl was mesmerized by this simple gift: a lit candle, placed gently in her hand. In baptism, we receive the light of Christ, and we promise, through God’s gift, to walk in that light all the days of our life.
I hope this Advent season has been meaningful for you, as you have prepared your heart for the coming of the Savior, both at our Christmas celebrations, and when He comes again. I treasure Advent, and always wish it were a little longer (though its brevity is part of its power).
But now that Christmas is here, whether we have done much preparation, or little, the gracious gift of God’s light in our savior, Jesus Christ, is given to us. May we wonder in awe at that beauteous light, seeing it as through the eyes of a child. And may we walk in it, in the ways of peace.
I wish you and yours, throughout Oklahoma and beyond, a merry 12 days of Christmas, as we rejoice in the light of the Prince of Peace.
The Right Reverend Poulson Reed
Bishop of Oklahoma