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The Beauty of the Sun and the Son
Having moved to Cleveland from the west coast I have adjusted over these many years to the extreme geographical and weather changes. But quite suddenly it seems, my thirtieth winter in this climate—I ‘unadjusted’. By the end of January I was feeling pummeled by endless gray, cold days. Like a bear I ate as winter intruded and then just wanted to curl up and sleep until spring and the daffodils would arrive.
Mankind
has known and worshiped the effects of the sun throughout
civilization. Sun gods were worshipped in ancient times. For the Greeks
and Romans, Incas, Aztecs, and Egyptians knew the sun’s healing
effects, psychologically, physically and spiritually.
Throughout the ages the ritualistic, and later modern day scientific benefits have influenced “doctors and healers; the athletes and warriors; the scientist and artists of all civilizations and they were not naively interested in the sun as a supplement to their various interests, but rather, were deeply aware of the sun as a central factor in their existence and in their well being physically & mentally.”*
Throughout the ages the ritualistic, and later modern day scientific benefits have influenced “doctors and healers; the athletes and warriors; the scientist and artists of all civilizations and they were not naively interested in the sun as a supplement to their various interests, but rather, were deeply aware of the sun as a central factor in their existence and in their well being physically & mentally.”*
It
doesn’t matter where you live in the world, the sun influences our
moods, activities, crops, seasons, and our health. A day of sunlight
can bring happiness. After last week’s snowfall, and last month’s
darkness I woke up to the sun’s beautiful rays brightly reflecting off
snow laden branches. The temperatures were only in the twenties, but
out I went and for the first few minutes stood like an underground mole
blindly blinking in the glorious light, my spirits lifted.
Today,
we are beginning to understand from scientific studies how really
important the effects of sunlight are on our mental and physical
health. Sunlight contributes to our total health and happiness.
In the mid-eighties we begin to understand a psychological disorder, the symptoms increasing as light decreases. Season affective disorder (or S.A.D.) is a type of depression that typically occurs each year as the days grow shorter in the fall and winter and sunlight decreases. Some people react adversely to this decreasing amount of light and the symptoms become most intense during the darkest months and don’t lift until spring. There is light treatment (phototherapy) for those who suffer.
In the mid-eighties we begin to understand a psychological disorder, the symptoms increasing as light decreases. Season affective disorder (or S.A.D.) is a type of depression that typically occurs each year as the days grow shorter in the fall and winter and sunlight decreases. Some people react adversely to this decreasing amount of light and the symptoms become most intense during the darkest months and don’t lift until spring. There is light treatment (phototherapy) for those who suffer.
What I find fascinating about all this discussion of sunlight and its effects is its relationship to beauty. Light, radiance, doxa, claritas—are the theological terms used to define a component of ‘beauty’--light. Christ came to be a light in our dark world announcing that ‘I am the light of the world.” (John 8:12).
Beauty shines through the elegance of form and every artist knows this. Surely the Divine Artist created His masterpiece for humanity when the light of the world was shining through the elegance of human form in His Son. The Gospels are a literary masterpiece describing the accounts of simple fishermen who witnessed Christ’s life of self-sacrificing love and obedience to the Father, revealed in brilliance and splendor.
Never
before in our history has there been such an opportunity for the layman
and the public in general to understand the scientific ways in which we
can benefit from ‘light’. In this difficult economic times we now even
turn to solar power, a free source of life giving energy helps us to
create a healthy body, mind, economy. Yet there are more "life-giving"
rays than sunlight.
Radiance is much more than the physical light, more than winter cloud cover scattering and the illumination of the sun’s rays on the earth. Lack of illumination –the darkening of a mind, the shadows on a faith, a dark night of the soul—this darkness may be far more detrimental to our souls and spirits and what of our eternal souls? The Saints knew this. St. Albert the Great associated beauty with goodness in a moral sense and connected it with an illumination of truth and wisdom as the source of light and form.
Light was an early Christian symbol for divine beauty and for the splendor of the divine glory. A vision shaped by beauty becomes a radiant life in the context of faith. Mother Teresa exemplified this as she looked into the faces of the sick and the dying on the streets of Calcutta and saw the face of Christ in the faces of leapers, the hungry, the poor, the naked, the dying, she reflected the loved of Christ.
Twentieth century Swiss theologian Hans Urs von Balthasar
explains the elements of theological aesthetics as “light radiating
form”. It is the perception of His glory, which leads to our
salvation.“The light is the ground of our experience of rapture, the
experience by which the observer is seized by beauty and drawn into its
dazzling radiance.” Light enters our perception and illuminates truth.
Today we still use the divine Words of “light from light” in the creed
of Nicea repeated in the liturgy. The Bible conveys God’s presence by
the symbol of light.
Radiance is much more than the physical light, more than winter cloud cover scattering and the illumination of the sun’s rays on the earth. Lack of illumination –the darkening of a mind, the shadows on a faith, a dark night of the soul—this darkness may be far more detrimental to our souls and spirits and what of our eternal souls? The Saints knew this. St. Albert the Great associated beauty with goodness in a moral sense and connected it with an illumination of truth and wisdom as the source of light and form.
Light was an early Christian symbol for divine beauty and for the splendor of the divine glory. A vision shaped by beauty becomes a radiant life in the context of faith. Mother Teresa exemplified this as she looked into the faces of the sick and the dying on the streets of Calcutta and saw the face of Christ in the faces of leapers, the hungry, the poor, the naked, the dying, she reflected the loved of Christ.
Certainly
God’s glory shines out in the beauty and order of creation, “the
heavens declare the glory of God.” (Psalm 19:1). God created light on
the first day of Creation and it is revealed in our lives each day with
a new dawn. Throughout our lives and throughout history God gives each
of us glimpses of His divine glory.
Christ reveals the ultimate divine glory because He is the truth of God, the light and way to God. This glory is most fully revealed in Christ. He is “the Lord of glory” (1 Corin. 2:8)
Christ reveals the ultimate divine glory because He is the truth of God, the light and way to God. This glory is most fully revealed in Christ. He is “the Lord of glory” (1 Corin. 2:8)
The Saints know that we have an inherent responsibility as men and women of faith to illuminate all that is true, good and beautiful in this world. Having glimpsed the beauty of Christ the Saints reflect a measure of that beauty, we pray that our lives too can reflect some of that beauty. Beauty opens out its radiance when it shines through the human heart in love that illuminates.
The Saints lives reflect God’s splendor, a hushed dignity bequeathed by lives of contemplative prayer. Prayer is the way in which we too, may lift ourselves towards the light and illumine the dark recesses of our humanness. Prayer is the way in which we learn to surrender the dark fragments to God to make us whole, to make us healthy, and to make us beautiful through Christ.
Posted by Debra Classen at 2/13/2010 8:44 PM 
Categories: Debra Classen, Journal
Tags: sun radiance health sunlight light beauty
Categories: Debra Classen, Journal
Tags: sun radiance health sunlight light beauty
A lovely piece reflecting a similar experience of the dark I had this winter http://findingtimeforgod.blogspot.com/2010/01/ice-in-soul.html
My husband was so concerned he recommended I hit the tanning booth. Which I've done, but writing about it, exposing the darkness to the light, helped break its power prior to acquiring a tan.
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