At Christmas, the Light of the World makes its descent into earthly existence. This continues into the course of the year. The Light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not yet comprehended it.
Our life as Christians—not just our task—but our joy, our way—is to follow the light of the Star of Grace, letting it guide us, and teaching us to bear this light within ourselves. When we look at the variety and capacity of evil at work in the world, we are at risk of losing ourselves in the darkness: darkness taking the form of lack of understanding, of willful deception, of manipulations of those in power who seek to misuse their power for personal gain, or even just the general difficulty of being able to discern the way for ourselves—the great darkness within with which so many people struggle.
When we listen not only to the story of the Priest Kings, but also to that of Joseph—they are guided by the divine light in several ways. The Priest Kings who can read the heavenly script are guided by this new moving Star that shines its way to, above, and into the place where the Child is then found. They recognize the great light that has been born into the world in him, and offer themselves and their great treasures to him and all that he stands for—a new hope of salvation. A new priestly kingship given to all human beings.
And the Priest Kings are guided on their further way through a decisive dream, that alerts them to evil and helps them go home by another way. Joseph too is guided by an Angel who comes to him in a dream—again! (for recall the visitation in a dream which helped Joseph to take Mary as his wife even though she was already withchild). He is visited again now after the birth and told to take his family to Egypt to wait out the great evil that would take place under Herod’s rule.
And Herod fulfills the conclusion of his descent into evil and destroys the lives of those innocent children. He is the servant of those who would destroy the future becoming of the human being. When the danger has passed, Joseph is then again visited by an Angel who tells him to return to Israel, and to return to a place called Nazareth. In addition to this, all along the way, Priest Kings and Joseph are guided by the words of the prophets of old.
The guidance of the spiritual world does not come to everyone in dreams, prophecies or angels—especially today. But it can come through a renewed wakeful religious practice, that helps us strengthen our inner lives and develop a perception for the living spirit—and to align ourselves anew with that which gives us true spiritual strength to meet the questions of our lives with courage.
Recall this prayer for courage that so many cherish:
We must eradicate from the soul all fear and terror of what comes toward the human being out of the future. We must acquire serenity in all feelings and sensations about the future. We must look forward with absolute equanimity to everything that may come. And we must think that whatever comes is given us by a world direction full of wisdom. It is part of what we must learn in this age, namely to live out of pure trust, without any security in existence, trust in the ever-present help of the spiritual world. Truly nothing else will do, if our courage is not to fail us. Let us discipline our will, and let us seek the awakening within ourselves, every morning and every evening. (paraphrased from Rudolf Steiner)
We are surrounded by spiritual beings all the time who wish to aid us. In this act of consecrating the human being, the renewed Mass that we here celebrate, we make a conscious and nascent superconscious connection to those who have died, who seek to inspire us; to angels and archangels and all the guiding spirits who unite themselves with us for humanity’s healthful becoming; and with Him—the Guiding Star of Grace—who came to dwell on the earth, and to dwell among us, and to shine within us. The religious path to courage is through devotion. May we be courageous enough to open ourselves in willing devotion to his shining!
Rev. Liza Marcato