What if the shadow we cast isn't something to eliminate but part of the medicine for what ails the soul? 

In this conversation from our series, “Christian Shadow Work,” Patrick and Jonah further explore how Christ relates to our darkness. This involves nothing like condemnation but rather a creative and radical process of integration that leads towards healing.

Drawing from the biblical image of the bronze serpent lifted up in the wilderness (Numbers 21:8-9), they reveal how the very thing that has poisoned us can, when rightfully integrated, become part of the medicine that heals us. This spiritual principle illuminates again why "there is no condemnation in Christ" (Romans 8:1). Our shadows are included in the divine plan, integrated by God into the path that leads us into spiritual maturation. They are something possessing enough power and personal relevance to bring us to the threshold where grace can enter. Fighting this integration, rejecting the shadows we cast, actually rejects this wisdom-permeated divine path.

Going beyond just the ideas, this conversation unfolds a practical pathway for shadow integration. It begins with the courage to behold our darkness honestly; the step of taking responsibility by saying "yes, this is me"; exploring what our shadow is trying to teach us; and finally, allowing our weakness to become an altar at which we can pray for divine assistance. 

After exploring individual examples from their own lives, Jonah and Patrick focus on what they experience emanating from Christ in these experiences, emphasizing how he doesn't approach our shadow with a corrective spirit saying "you should be different," but with a transformative invitation to "become new through this darkness." 

Our very specific life-journey, with all its unique shadow elements, isn't a failure to meet some general ideal but a holy alchemical process guided by the highest spiritual forces in the universe. When approached this way, our shadow becomes not our enemy, but the very doorway through which our deepest healing unfolds.

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The Light in Every Thing is a podcast of The Seminary of The Christian Community in North America. Learn more about the Seminary and its offerings at our website. This podcast is supported by our growing Patreon community. To learn more, go to www.patreon.com/ccseminary.

Thanks to Elliott Chamberlin who composed our theme music, “Seeking Together."