Jesus, the Christmas Light

Luke 1:78-79

[T]he Rising Sun will come to us from heaven
to shine on those living in darkness
   and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the path of peace.

The season of Advent is upon us once again. We prepare to receive the Light of the World, Jesus Christ, into our lives and to announce his coming to a world in darkness. It is no coincidence that the Church in the 4th century chose December 25 as the day to celebrate Jesus’ birth. The date was significant to the Romans for two reasons: it was the day of natalis solis invicti, the birth of the unconquered sun, and it was also the birthday of Mithras, the Persian “Sun of Righteousness,” a god popular with Roman soldiers. The preoccupation with the Sun during winter, across various cultures, is understandable given that during winter the days grow shorter and the nights grow longer. Couple the brevity of the daylight hours with the leaves falling from the trees, as well as overcast and gloomy skies, and people began to fear that the Sun was dying. The Aztecs, during the five days prior to the winter solstice — the shortest days of the year — would talk in whispers and walk without making a sound for fear of upsetting their Sun god Huitzilopochtli, who might very well leave never to return, leaving them in perpetual darkness. According to the mythology of many of these cultures, the Sun eventually rises again or returns to the people, bringing life-giving light and causing the crops to grow once more. There is a darkness deeper than night, a darkness that the warm Sun that greets humanity every morning can never dispel. It is the darkness of hearts overwhelmed with guilt and sin, of minds lacking in meaning and purpose, of relationships lacking in communion and love. And so to make the point of the significance of Jesus the early Church chose December 25 to celebrate His birth: Jesus is the “Sun” whose glory outshines every star and whose Light illumines every human being and brings life-giving power to every heart that welcomes Him. As you and yours hang Christmas lights on the roof or on your tree remind one another that Jesus is “The light [that] shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:5). We can rejoice and have hope because the Jesus, the Rising Sun, has come and the darkness will be gone.