The light we have to be

THERE, of course, are many different kinds of light. You have sunlight, moonlight, spotlight, flashlight, klieg and neon light, strobe light, etc. Each has its particular importance and use for us. 

But if we go by our Christian faith, we are supposed to be a light too. We are supposed to be a light to the others, to guide them to our proper and ultimate end who is God. We are supposed to be eager to give good examples to the others.

All this is based on what Christ said once. “You are the light of the world…Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” (Mt 5,14-16) 

It’s obviously a different kind of light. It’s a mysterious kind, to say the least, that goes beyond but does not exclude the sensible, temporal and even the intelligible dimensions of our life.

It’s a light that we produce with our mere presence, or with our words and deeds. It’s a light that we are supposed to produce all the time and everywhere, and not just intermittently and in some places. Even in our sleep, it has to radiate. More, even in our absence, it can continue to shine in the memory of others, in their minds and hearts.

It’s actually the most real, ultimate and necessary light we have on earth. All the other lights will come and go, in varying ways and lengths of time. This one can last forever. It will never wane nor fade away. It goes beyond time and space.

This is the light we have to be, the light Christ wants us to be. It is the light meant for us, for which we have been designed by God himself, our Father and Creator. No matter how we mess up with that design, our capacity to be that light can never be totally lost.

We can be this light if we strive to identify ourselves increasingly with the source of the Eternal Light, God himself, through Christ in the Holy Spirit. "I am the light of the world," Christ said. (Jn 8,12) This is, of course, a truth of faith that has to accepted with faith, otherwise, nothing will happen.

This light can come about if we truly desire to know more about God and to grow in a more intimate relationship with him, praying to him in adoration, thanksgiving, expiation and petition.

We can have this light if we earnestly study the doctrine of our faith, making it flesh of our flesh, such that we can arrive at the awareness we are living with God and not simply by ourselves. 

The teachings of Christ, now taught by the Church, are no mere theories that can give us some brilliant ideas. They really bring us to Christ. Our words would not simply be our words, but also God’s words.

We can have this light if we exert the effort to grow in the virtues, allowing ourselves to be shaped and polished according to the image of Christ. We chip off our rough edges as we try to grow in humility, fortitude, temperance, chastity, charity, etc.

Intriguingly enough, this light, while supposedly to be put on the lamp stand and not under the bed, is never of the showy type, the kind that grabs attention by way of sensationalism. It stays away from any sign of triumphalism, a shallow and false sense of confidence and victory, unacquainted with suffering.

Its power to attract and guide is by way of burning quietly and constantly, always refueling itself through a continuing process of renewal and conversion. It acts out what Christ once said: “If I be lifted up from the earth, I will draw all things to myself.” (Jn 12,32)

We have to be wary of false lights that are also proliferating in the world today. These are lights that promise far more than what they can deliver, temporary and relative lights that claim to have eternal and absolute character. They overreach themselves.

These are the human sciences and arts, the very ambitious ideologies that are not inspired by belief in and love of God. Rather, the contrary. They seem meant to disprove the existence of God, and to undermine faith, religion and piety.

They can have some fascinating effects, rich in immediate practical and feel-good benefits, but they are full of tricks and machinations that sooner or later would just fall apart.

Let’s be the light we are meant to be. Let the light of our faith shine forth very brightly everywhere!