Rev. Megan Huston — Faith in the Dark
Darkness is my closest friend...
I saw a story on the news this week about a controversial decision to carry on the annual New Years Eve fireworks display in Sidney, Australia. Large parts of the country are under a nation wide fire ban after thousands of people have lost their homes, been displaced and are seeking refuge.
Some say that the fireworks display should have been cancelled so the money could go toward relief efforts. Scientists complained that it set a precedent. Economists said that the income from the event was needed.
The country’s Prime Minister said he was in favor of continuing the fireworks display because the country needed it as a sign of its resilience.
But I wonder if some Australians simply didn’t feel like celebrating on New Year’s Eve this year. There comes a time when one needs to acknowledge what is: the countryside is burning. Now is not the time for fireworks….
But the show must go on city officials insisted. And so they did. The Sidney sky was filled with light despite petitions and protests against it.
Psalm 88:18 proclaims “Darkness is my closest friend…” which leads me to wonder is there some wisdom in befriending the dark?
During some of our darker weeks of the year, we are going to consider what it means to become a friend to the dark in a sermon series called, “Faith in the Dark.” Rather than running from it, we will consider what the darkness might have to teach us about God, life, and love.
Barbara Brown Taylor has a book titled, “Learning to Walk in the Dark,” which inspired this series. I bought the book several years ago, read a chapter or two, and put it back on the shelf because it didn’t mean much to me at the time. Last year I decided to pick it back up again during a time when I was struggling to encounter God and the book took on a whole new meaning.
I love the book because it acknowledges that the feeling of the absence of God is a very real part of our faith lives. It challenges us against what Miriam Greenspan describes as “spiritual bypassing.” In describing this term, Taylor writes:
some use religion to dodge the dark emotions instead of letting it lead us to embrace those dark angels as the best, most demanding spiritual teachers we may ever know.
So as the Christmas lights come down and the New Years decorations are put away, we will turn our attention to Biblical stories of encounters with God that happened in the dark.
I invite you to journey with us as we acknowledge the dark and what can grow within it.
Peace,
