“For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light.”
These words from St. Paul conclude the first reading for today. Ever since the fall of Adam and Eve, there has been darkness in the world. For centuries, darkness and suffering loomed, and even though God showed his greatness to the Israelites time and time again, darkness continued to prevail. It was only when God sent His son to suffer and die for us, and experience the darkness Himself, that His light re-entered the world. Before Christ, people had the Law, but no order. The Law was impossible to adhere to, and it resulted in confusion and chaos within Israel. People lost sight of the true God and fell into the darkness. They became slaves to sin – selfishness, idolatry, addiction, and wickedness towards one another. And then Christ came and restored order.
Order is defined as “a straightening out, so as to eliminate confusion.” This is what Christ’s suffering, death and resurrection did for us. It straightened things out. Christ provided a straight path that we can take to get out of the darkness, to move towards the light, and eliminate the confusion. Does this eliminate sin and it’s effects from the world? Not at all. Since the days of Christ, sin has continued to reign here on Earth, especially in the last century. But Christ’s death and resurrection provide a way out, a way to combat sin, and a way to light the path to Heaven.
We all have our darkness – our vices, addictions, faults and negative feelings that we exert every day. We all have things that we struggle with – ailments and illnesses we have, losses we have experienced, and sufferings we encounter on a daily basis. We have stresses in our lives that some days may make us feel like we are spiraling out of control, that we can barely keep up. And some times, we may simply feel lost and alone, drowning in sorrow and emptiness with no way out.
At these times, we are like the crippled woman in todays Gospel reading, who suffered in her own personal darkness for 18 years. But there she was, worshipping in the synagogue amidst all her suffering and the wickedness around her. She had faith. Jesus recognized her faith despite her struggles, the faith like that of Abraham – and he rewarded her and healed her. He rewarded her faith, perseverance, and devotion to God despite her pain and suffering. We all need to have this level of faith, devotion and perseverance throughout our afflictions. It is definitely tough to do, and it’s going to hurt, both emotionally and physically. And won’t always understand. We just need to know that even though we may not understand why certain things happen or why we continue to struggle through trials, we need to maintain our faith in God that it is all part of His plan, and that perseverance will produce character in our lives and make us better people. Christ does not want us to suffer, but He knows that by following His model and loving Him, and trusting Him through these times, we will each become the person He knows we can be. And we will be rewarded, both here on Earth and in Heaven.
We cannot leave this darkness alone though. The woman in the Gospel didn’t spend her days as a hermit, keeping to herself and not being around people. She worshipped on the Sabbath with her fellow worshippers in the synagogue. We don’t know for sure, but she presumably was around these people, not just on the Sabbath, but also throughout the week. She knew that being around other people would help in her suffering, and it’s likely Christ knew this as well. This relates to the first reading where Paul writes:
“Be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and handed himself over for us as a sacrificial offering to God for a fragrant aroma. Immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be mentioned among you… Let no one deceive you with empty arguments, for because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the disobedient. So do not be associated with them…”
We need to be around positive people. We need to be obedient. As the saying goes, “birds of a feather flock together.” If we want to combat suffering and negativity that may be in our lives, we must start by hanging around positive people. We need to have relationships. However, we are whom we associate with, therefore if we desire to be Christ-like, we need to associate with like-mined people. This will help us in good times, and in bad, and when we are away from the “flock.”
A great way to do this is get involved in serving others at your parish. Look for ways to help out with other activities or ministries at your church where you can be around positive people who are working together to help other people and to do God’s will. Be Christ’s light to the community. Get involved in serving others, whether it is the needy, volunteer organizations, or public service. Or if you have the ability, volunteer at your kids school or volunteer to coach. There is nothing like the eyes of a child that can show you Christ’s light, and there’s no better way to change the world than to begin with todays youth, teaching them Christian principals and discipline without them even knowing it.
As Paul states, we must be imitators of Christ in our daily lives, and it’s easier to do this if we hang around positive, like-minded people on a regular basis. This doesn’t mean we are immune to trials and hurt, but being with brothers and sisters in Christ makes them easier to bear. This is the only way with which we can truly remove the darkness from our own lives, and be the inspiration and light to others who may not know the way.
