This article was written by Rev. David Gilliam of Tarrytown United Methodist Church

“We do not convince others by telling them loudly how wrong they are and how right we are.  We convince them by showing them a light so lovely they will want with all their hearts to know the source of it.”  –Madeleine L’Engle

Walking in Grant Park, Chicago, Christmas 2011, my wife and I chanced upon something illuminating. Following a sign above a long ascending ramp that read “Free Art This Way” we soon found ourselves atop the roof of the Art Institute of Chicago, standing in the presence of a singular art piece entitled “Lunar.” A fit of curiosity overcame me, then a smile, and then I saw the light.

Creator and artist Spencer Finch observes light as a primary subject.  The science behind his work is pretty cool (www.artic.edu/exhibition/lunar) but it was his simple vision that intrigued me: build a vessel to capture moonlight and return it to Earth for all to see.  Check it out—light on board.  Wonderful!

Being a student of religions and their scriptures my “Lunar” encounter brought to mind many enlightening stories revealed to our ancestors.  As best I know every faith tradition has a “vessel to capture light” and return it to Earth for all to see, and maybe even see by.  As a Christian I am drawn to the Christmas story as a holy wonderful small step for a man and a giant leap for humankind.  According to that story God sent light into the world and darkness has not overcome it.  Even at this great distance I see reflected in a child born in Bethlehem, God shining forth, luminous and radiant.  Check out this manger—light on board, tidings of comfort and joy all peoples in times like these when the moon is down and our troubled nights feel long and frighteningly dark.

Truth is, the moon doesn’t actually shine; it reflects the light of the Sun, the true light that makes life possible for us here on Earth.  When Moses came down from the mountain his face was shining, reflecting the light of God.  Monk and popular author Thomas Merton once described a whole street full of people as all walking around shining like the sun, reflecting the Divine within.  My late Father used to counsel me: “be a source of light, not heat.”  I try.  Today, as we all find ourselves in a deeply troubled and conflicted world, a race so often walking in darkness, I urge us all to try.  Let us reflect for one another that light so lovely.