Parish magazine article June 2025
Darkness and light are often a shorthand in our western popular culture for the forces of good and evil. We know instantly in films and television who the heroes and villains are often by the colour of their clothes. So often arguments in our culture are often presented as binary choices between right and wrong, good and bad, left wing or right wing, etc. Just look at the reporting in our news media about world events and you quickly see that we are presented with clear choices rather than any sense of nuance. I was listening on the radio as I prepared to write this, and what was being suggested was that when it comes to political debate most people would prefer nuance to bold binary statements.
In many other cultures too, darkness represents evil or hidden unsavoury activities. Alongside this we may find that many of our human fears revolve around darkness and what hides in it. Yet what has struck me recently is that in scripture the idea of darkness is not always so binary. I want to challenge you to look again at what the writers of the bible say and begin to understand darkness with the eyes of faith rather than through the lens of culture. In Psalm 139 the psalmist talks about darkness from God’s perspective :
“Even the darkness is not dark to You, And the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You.” Psalm 139:12
God does not differentiate light and dark in the way we do, after all he created both of them. We do not live in a ‘ying and yang’ universe of two equal powers of good and evil or opposing forces of light and dark like a celestial chess set. We don’t live in a Star Wars like universe with mystical forces at play that are held in balance with a constant struggle of the dark side and the light side!
The bible however does use the ideas of light and dark to differentiate between those who love and follow God and those do not. Isaiah in his prophecy about the coming Messiah reminds them that when God comes to live amongst them then the light of the kingdom will shine on them. The prophet reminds them in a powerful metaphor that the light of the kingdom will dispel and overcome the darkness.
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.” Isaiah 9:2
We should however never equate that with two equal and opposite powers. Instead, it is an analogy which helps us understand that we have choices and God represents the best choices available to us. Many of the New Testament writers talk about the Christian faith as choosing to live in the daylight rather than in the night time. They want the early church to understand that we need to live consistently, transparently and in the open so people can see the difference our faith makes to the way we live our lives. John in the great prologue to his Gospel uses exactly this picture reminding us that God cannot be overwhelmed or swept away by the darkness.
“What came into existence was Life, and the Life was Light to live by. The Life-Light blazed out of the darkness; the darkness couldn’t put it out..” John 1:5 Message
It reminds us too that even at the very darkest moments of our lives God has not walked away from us, he is not absent, and he stands alongside us. Matthew in his Gospel recognises this when he records these words from Jesus to his disciples.
“What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim upon the housetops.” Matthew 10:27
Jesus wants the disciples to know that he is with them and alongside them at every stage and he will not turn his back or walk away from us. It is the Holy Spirit given to us at Pentecost who whispers to our hearts and guides us in our daily lives, it is the Spirit who will give us the words to speak when we don’t know how to pray. If as you read this because of life’s circumstances you feel trapped in the darkness, remember that God stands in it with you.
The Venerable Derek Chedzey
Archdeacon of Hereford