Pastor’s Corner (11/01)

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
John 1:5

The Messenger will come out on the 1st of November, All Saints Day. As I ponder my Pastor’s Corner for this edition of our
newsletter, I’ve had a number of things float through my mind. Initially, I had thought I’d write something about Halloween, All Hallows Eve, and All Saints Day. However, given the events during the past few days this seemed a bit frivolous. I also find, as I grow older, that the holiday of Halloween has lost some of its wonder. I don’t enjoy horror movies as I once did and dressing up in scary costumes doesn’t seem like much fun. Perhaps I’m becoming a bit stodgy as I age. Or, perhaps, I find so much darkness in the world these days that I don’t want to willingly invite it into my life. Horror movies and scary stories are no longer simply stories of fiction. It seems that darkness and violence are all around us. There also seems to be a darkness in the human heart that frightens me these days. I don’t understand the darkness that dwells within someone that urges them to send letter bombs or carry firearms into houses of worship. I am pained by the kind of darkness that would urge someone to enter a house of prayer and randomly shoot as many people as possible. My heart aches for a clergy colleague who must now bury so many of his congregation. When I feel overwhelmed by such darkness I return to the above words from the Gospel of John. John tells us about the coming Word that brings light and life into an often dark world. John tells us that “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.” During these dark days I invite us to look for the light that shines in the darkness. There are symbols of this light all around us. Pondering the advent of Halloween I was reminded of the small lights that are placed in pumpkins to create Jack-O-Lanterns. Some of them depict scary faces, some humorous, but they usually share the idea of a small light shining from within. This coming Sunday we’ll remember those who have died during the past year and we’ll do so by lighting candles. Whether they burn on Halloween, All Saints Day or All Saints Sunday, may they be reminders for us that “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.”

God’s light shines into the darkness in our world and in our hearts and is not overcome by it. May we all find courage and strength in these timeless words of Scripture.

In love and faith,
Pastor Karen