During the winter months, especially December, many religions focus on light:
The light of the Divali lamps to welcome the goddess Lakshmi into the homes of Hindus
The candles and sweets of Santa Lucia Day in Sweden
Waiting for Jesus, the light of the world, to be born again in the hearts of Christians
The light of the Hannukah Menorah
in the homes of Jews
Observing Winter Solstice and waiting for the light of the sun to return to the earth in the Pagan tradition
Lighting the Kwanzaa Kinara in the African American tradition
A good friend, Terri Lynn Brewer, has written a children's story about another kind of light.
I have copied it below, with her permission.
May your days and nights be merry and bright during this season of light.
"When we were kids, Mom and Dad would always tells us, "We love you." We would get kisses and hugs and even get cuddles in their arms.
Though we may not be able to exactly define the word love, we do know what it feels like:
like warmth, like when we hold our favorite blanket, teddy bear, doll, or our favorite dinosaur.
One day when I was a little girl, I broke the rules.
That's right, I disobeyed. I was playing rough with four of my friends in the house- the forbidden play zone- and I broke a lamp.
Oh BOY, was I in trouble.
I wouldn't get love anymore unless I could get out of this mess. I wasn't sure how but I knew I'd do anything to make sure my parents would still love me- that I could still get to feel those warm cuddles.
First, I needed to clean up the broken lamp, and I did.
Then, later, even though they may have not noticed the lamp for a while, I decided to tell my Mom and Dad that I broke the lamp- that I broke the rules.
My Mom and Dad sat and listened very closely.
When I was done I thought for sure, no, I KNEW, they would tell me that I was bad.
But neither of them said anything for a moment. Oh boy, this was going to be much worse than I had expected.
I knew they didn't love me anymore, but then, what??...they both reached out and pulled me close, saying,
"We all break lamps at some time in our lives. We are so happy that you did not get cut. Thank you for cleaning up the broken glass and telling us the truth."
Then they both drew me near and told me they loved me.
And do you know what I learned? What I know now that I didn't know before?
Now I know that love can even come from broken lamps."
On one occasion when the disciples had just finished a road trip across the country preaching about universal salvation, Jesus scheduled a meeting with them at the downtown library so that he could hear about their experiences.
Even though he had been careful to choose a secluded alcove on the third floor, the crowds who loved to be near him still managed to find him. Jesus noticed men wearing dirty jackets and carrying worn backpacks, mothers with small children and people who seemed to be talking to no one in particular. Before long, more than a hundred people had gathered in the small space.
Since the people were waiting so patiently for a word from him, Jesus had compassion on them and because their numbers were more than he had expected, he took them outside to talk so that they would not disturb other library patrons.
He talked about his vision for a world where each person would be valued for the unique gifts they bring to their community and a world where justice was practiced and not just preached. He spent some time talking about the word love and how society had turned it into a syrupy sentiment instead of an action word that demonstrated to broad love of the Divine in each of individual. The people applauded and said “Amen” and encouraged Jesus to keep talking.
Soon it was lunchtime. The disciples pulled Jesus aside and told him to send the people away so that Jesus and the twelve could go and get lunch. Jesus told them he would like to invite the people gathered to eat lunch with them.
The disciples were appalled that Jesus would want to invite all these people to lunch. “Besides,” they said, “we were going to just go up to the street or a sandwich. After our teaching trips we have very little money left. We were going to pitch in and get something for us all to share….we will be lucky if the 13 of us get enough to eat. For sure there will not be enough to feed all of these people. Let them go and get their own lunch.”
Jesus could not bear to send all of the people away hungry when he was going to eat so he told the disciples to go and buy as many sandwiches as they could. When they returned he took all of the sandwiches and cut them into pieces, gave thanks for the food and those gathered, and then he invited everyone to join them for lunch. Many of the people at the lunch opened their bags and purses and took out what food they had brought along and pretty soon they had a nice little pot luck lunch. Each person took a piece of sandwich and one or two other little treats and then they all sat around eating and laughing. They must have looked like they were having a party because several people walking by decided to join in too.
After a while the crowd began to break up and the disciples helped Jesus clean up. They noticed that there was still some food left over and they gathered up the left overs – just enough left so each of the disciples and Jesus could put a snack in their pockets for later.
As Jesus departed for home, he thought about the day and what a great time it had been talking about what the world could become and making new friends. He thought about the meal and how everyone had been fed. “Just goes to show you what can happen when everyone gives what they can,” he thought, and he smiled, looking forward to the time when the spirit of the day would become a reality for the world.
"Christmas is
a season of the spirit,
a habit of the heart,
not reserved for designated days in December,
But availbale all days, all year,
lighting our way through the darkness and the
dullness of the winters of our souls to the
Bethlehem that dwells in each of us.
There a star shines in spite of ourselves and the
absurdities and the ironies of our existence.
We need to be reminded, now and then, of that star's
abiding presence and persistence in each one of us."
---Patricia Bowen
