The winter solstice is the precise moment when the sun is situated exactly over the Tropic of Capricorn, seemingly at a standstill. The word solstice is derived from the Latin word sol, meaning sun, and sisterre, meaning standstill. We know that time does not really stand still, but time is a marker, an occasion of turning from and turning towards. This moment cannot be contained, sustained, or paused. Time is motion; it marches on.

There are moments in our lives when our great darkness feels interminable, infinite, beyond, and outside of time. “In the interior wintertime, we can easily lose heart, stop believing in our goodness, forget about our resilience, and discount the presence of those who love us. There is often sadness, loneliness, and a depletion of joy. This is the season of grief and depression, of searching and struggle.” (The Circle of Life: The Hearts Journey Through the Seasons, Joyce Rupp & Macrina Wiederkehr) It can be reassuring that just as the astronomical start to winter begins, the solstice gives way to longer days and the darkness will yield to a promised light. So we hope with us.

Joan Chittister writes, “Winter is a lesson about the fine art of loss and growth. Its lesson is clear; There is only one way out of struggle and that is by going into its darkness, waiting for the light, and being open to new growth.” It is good to remember that even in the cosmos there is either more dark or more light. This is life.

When there seems little hope, we can long for hope. Where there is turmoil, we can long for peace. We can rest knowing that as winter passes, so too shall our personal winter. In the darkness, we can rest in the light.

A SoulCollage® card I created during the Homecoming retreat titled “Hope: Rest in the Light.” Wisdom I received from the card: It is our journey to carry the light. We are embodied with Christ light. Rest in the light. Patiently wait. Holding the light is sharing the light. The resting, pacing ourselves, is part of the Hope. Later I wrote this French Pantoum below.

Hope: Rest in the Light

The Divine dwells within
Safeguard the light
Wait expectantly, keep watch
Shimmer like silver and gold.

Safeguard the light
Angel wings whisper hope
Shimmer like silver and gold
Light-bearer.

Angel wings whisper hope
Wait expectantly, keep watch
Light-bearer
The Divine dwells within.

Sometimes we wait in Holy Darkness—wondering when it will be over, worrying that it may never be, even, giving up hope. It is the ritual of the Advent wreath that reminds us that darkness has an end. As we light the candles, making our way around the circle, we know that our waiting ends and Christ will come. We are reminded that we are a dwelling place for God; Christ is incarnated in us. Advent is about hope even in the darkness.

© Jodi Blazek Gehr, Being Benedictine Blogger