You Stupid Darkness

Lighting the candle of Christ instead of cursing the darkness

12/25/2017

Luke 2:1-14 And Joseph too went up from Galilee from the town of Nazareth to Judea, to the city of David that is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. While they were there, the time came for her to have her child, and she gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. Now there were shepherds in that region living in the fields and keeping the night watch over their flock. The angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were struck with great fear. The angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy  that will be for all the people. For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Christ and Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger."

              In 1960 John F. Kennedy gave a speech accepting the nomination of the Democratic Party to run for president of the United States. In that speech he used a wonderful phrase that maybe you’ve heard before. He said: “We are not here to curse the darkness but to light the candle that can guide us through that darkness to a safe and sane future.” As you know, Kennedy was elected later that year and became the 35th president of the United States in 1961.

                Now, not everyone agrees with that proverb to light a candle instead of curse the darkness. In one of the Charlie Brown comic strips, Charlie Brown runs into Linus who is carrying a candle at night. Charlie Brown asks him, “What’s this?” Linus answers: “I have heard that it is better to light a single candle than to curse the darkness.” Charlie Brown replies, “That’s true, although there will always be those who will disagree with you.” In the last frame we see Lucy yelling at the night sky: “You stupid darkness!”

               Now, when God is the one who faces the darkness, which of those two do you think he does? Well, the Scriptures record two dramatic instances when God did face darkness and what he did about it, at the moment of the “old creation” and the moment of the “new creation.” The first instance occurred in Genesis chapter one. We read in verse two: “The earth was without form or shape, with darkness over the abyss and a mighty wind sweeping over the waters.” This condition of dark, formless abyss in Hebrew is called the “tohu wa-bohu.” What does God do when confronted by the tohu wa-bohu”? He does not say “You stupid darkness!” No. Rather, in verse three we read: “Then God said, Let there be light, and there was light.” That is, like President Kennedy said in his speech, God prefers to light a candle rather than curse the darkness.

               The second instance occurred in the gospel narrative we just heard describing the first Christmas, the moment of the “new creation.” Do you remember when the Baby Jesus was born? It was at night, and that wasn’t by accident. St. Luke records: “Now, there were shepherds in that region living in the fields and keeping the night watch over their flock. The angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them” (emphasis mine). In other words, Jesus is born at night because he is the Light that has come to dispel the darkness just like his Father did at the beginning of the old creation. Again, notice that God does not yell, “You stupid darkness!’ at the tohu wa-bohu. He lights a candle, the light of Christ. This is why Catholics traditionally attend midnight Mass – and usually sleep through it! – because it highlights (pun intended) how God deals with the darkness: not with a curse, but with a candle.

                By the way, have you noticed how God does this every year? Think about it. When do we celebrate Christmas every year? Obviously, on December 25. And when is the daylight shortest – the shortest day – during the whole year (at least in the Northern Hemisphere)? It is December 21, called the “Winter Solstice.” In other words, every year we taste a little of that primordial tohu wa-bohu, that “formless darkness” that covered the earth in the beginning. And once again, God says dramatically “Let there be light!” He sends his Son, Jesus as a candle lit in the darkness, and every day after December 25, the light gradually increases. In other words, every year, nature itself reminds us how God scattered the darkness both in the “old creation” and in the “new creation,” by lighting a candle rather than cursing the darkness.

              My friends, sooner or later we all face our own tohu wa-bohu, that is, we confront moments of darkness, despair, discouragement and doubt. We may be tempted like Lucy to yell, “You stupid darkness!” and I admit, it’ll probably feel pretty good when you do. But we should also remember what God did in those two epic moments when he faced the darkness: he lit a candle; he sent the light of Christ to dispel the darkness. Always ask yourself: what can I do to bring the light of Christ into this dark situation? Perhaps you can say a prayer, maybe you can give someone a hug, utter a word of encouragement or hope, share how you’ve faced your own struggles in the past, just let people know they are not alone, remember how hardship contributes to holiness, etc. Now, the one thing you are not allowed to do is to say, “Go talk to Fr. John, he’ll take care of your spiritual darkness!” No, this is your job as a child of the light. As our Evangelical friends are fond of repeating: “Man’s extremity is God’s opportunity.” The extremity of our darkness is God’s opportunity to light a candle.

             I hope this doesn’t sound too audacious to say, but I am convinced that because you are a child of God, you too can say with confidence and conviction, “Let there be light!” with your words and your actions and your attitude and thereby scatter the tohu wa-bohu that surrounds you and that envelops those you love. You will be practicing the family pattern of behavior – like Father, like Son. It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.

Praised be Jesus Christ!