Now is the time to be light in the darkness

Now is the time to be light in the darkness

BISHOP’S OPINION

By Bishop Riscylla Shaw

God is good. Never has in-the-flesh belonging, community and relationship been more important in the collective consciousness of our generation. As a planet, we people are in a crisis of identity, working to understand how we are individuals within community when we are fixed in self-isolation and quarantine. In the words of Adrienne Rich from her poem Natural Resources, “My heart is moved by all I cannot save: so much has been destroyed. I have to cast my lot with those who, age after age, perversely, with no extraordinary power, reconstitute the world.”

Time has moved forward since Rich courageously penned those words, yet the power of her poetry creates a timelessness that lends that verse to today. The first time I heard it, it was set to music and I was new to the choir that was singing it – Women Out Loud, of Haliburton County. We sang it as a lament for the loss of a dearly beloved, and it took my breath away; I found myself disliking it intensely, as it pulled my heart out. Over the years, as I grew to know the choir members, the music, and the humbling experience of having my own heart expanded, I have come to deeply resonate with the liminal experience of being on the threshold between that which brings life and that which moves us quite literally into the world-to-come.

In early April, Her Majesty the Queen expressed her deep gratitude to the healthcare and essential workers who have been pulling together to provide critical supports during the COVID-19 pandemic. My heart is moved by the sacrificial and heroic presence of the first responders, police, the care and essential workers, including nursing home staff, personal support workers, the employees at grocery marts, gas stations, funeral homes, online counsellors, mental health professionals, clergy, volunteers young and older, and so many more who, through perseverance and actual or virtual presence, are providing life-saving assistance.

The Queen continued by saying that this unity will be remembered as an expression of “our national spirit, and its symbol will be the rainbows drawn by children.” Every time I see a rainbow, it is a visceral experience of being on the brink of seeing or understanding something so much more than I can ask or imagine. In the beautiful description of Ezekiel 1:28, we hear, “Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around God. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD.” Rainbows are springing up all over the place in chalk on pavement, in windows on poster paper, like universal arrows pointing to hope. They bring colour into our lives and remind us of the living presence of God in our earthly pilgrimage, bringing peace, love, mercy and compassion to our hearts and minds, to our individual selves and to our communities. Let them encourage us to not lose heart, but to keep the faith.

The transparent nature of rainbows can be like a sign pointing us to see truth beyond the immediate, to look for wisdom through very real grief and anger, to see the possibilities of a future together one step at a time. Now is the time to harness our imaginations and creativity, to establish a rhythm of life that includes space for miracles, the quiet, joyful presence of colour in a rainy sky, the delicate opening of our hearts to new life. Now is the time to strengthen as disciples of Christ, to learn again the familiar Word, to study and pray. Now is the time to hold up hope for one another, to be light in the darkness. Now is the time to get to know your soul.

Some go on lengthy pilgrimages to have this opportunity, others go to great lengths to avoid it… I encourage you to be kind to yourself, to be gentle with yourself. You are a beloved child of God, being born each moment. Keep the faith.