December 2000 (Vol. XIII, No. 11)

BLESSINGS and GREETINGS, dear friends. Pausing in silence as we move into a new season, may the Indwelling Light within your heart shine forth ... may peace blossom on the earth and justice dawn like new-born light! And may your holidays be seasoned with love and light and peace!

John Renard

Without the Light, the journey of life is fraught with dangers and no traveler's vision can penetrate the haze of self-centeredness. The ímage of God as Light that suffuses all the universe is one that unítes the divine transcendence and immanence... All of creation is replete with "signs" of God's presence, but they cannot be discerned without the Light.

Mother Teresa

Blessed One,
Flood my soul with Thy Spirit and light ...
Shine throuh me and be so in me that
   every soul I come in contact with may
   feel Thy Presence in my soul.
Let them look up and see no longer me,
   but only You.
Stay with me and then I shall begin
   to shine as You shine,
   so to shine as to be a light for others.
Amen.

Rachel Naomi Remen Stories to Heal By

The silence as broken at last by the bell signifying the end of morning activity. Turning to the old woman, I asked, "What are you looking at?" I immediately flushed. Prying into the lives of the residents was strictly forbidden. Perhaps she had not heard. But she had. S1ow1y she turned toward me, and I could see her face for the first time. It was radiant. In a voice filled with joy she said, "Why, child, I am looking at the Light."

Paul Tillich

Sometimes at the momet of despair, a wave of light breaks into our darkness, and it is as though a voice were saying: "You are accepted," accepted by that which is great than you.

D. L. Moody

It is better to live a holy life than to talk about it, Lighthouses do not ring bells and fire cannons to call attention to their shining — they just shine.

Mark Salzman Lying Awake

Nothing was changed, yet everything was changed. Compared to this, she felt as if she had been sleepwalking all of her life. "God is here."

I pierce the universe.
God pierces me.
I do not think; I am thought.
I do not know; I am known.

Every movement, every breath was poetry. She had passed through her dark night of the soul, and understood now how the light in one's heart – the light of faith – could shine brighter than the midday sun.

T. Tulku Knowledge of Freedom

The energy of human consciousness may share an afflnity with light that we do not yet understand. Turning toward that light, we might find it the source of all our inspiration and creativity.

Jacques Gaillot Voice from the Desert
We are made for Light. There are moments of perfect happiness, moments when one feels so well, at peace with oneself and with others. Such moments of fullness exist. They are rare, perhaps, but we have all experienced them. Each of us is capable of living such moments. They continue to send signals to us even when we are in despair. For on the mountain God summons us to the Light.
Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee The Face Before I Was Born
On the pavement a group of schoolchildren was walking past the driveway with their teacher. I noticed these young children crossing and suddenly I saw them in a way I have never seen human beings before or since. They were so full of light I could hardly 1ook, and on each child's chest where the heart is, a huge radiance like the sun was shining. Each little child had this dynamic, brilliant light, this radiant sun, ín the center of their being. The experience of the líght, its brillíance and energy, was beautiful and overwhelming. Later I came to realize that what I saw is the true nature of human beings — we are dynamic, luminous creatures of light.
A. Harvey, E. Hanut F=Perfume of the Desert

There are lights which ascend and lights which descend. The ascending lights are the lights of the heart; the descending lights are those of the Throne. The false self is the veil between the Throne and the heart, like springs toward like. Light ascends toward light and light descends upon light, and "it is light upon light."

Thomas Kelly A Testament of Devotion

Deep within us all, there ís an amazing inner sanctuary of the soul, a holy place, a Divine Center, a speaking Voice, to which we may continuously return. Eternity is at our hearts, pressing upon our time-torn líves, warming us wíth intimatíons of an astounding destiny, calling us home unto itself. Yielding to these persuasions, gladly committing ourselves in body and soul, utterly and completely, to the Light Within, is the beginning of true life. It is a dynamic center, a creative Life that presses to birth within us. It is a Light Within which illumines the face of God and casts new shadows and new glories upon the face of humanity.

N. Milanovich, S. McCune The Light Shall Set You Free

The millennium holds the promise that Heaven will be created on Earth, and this will be accomplished by grounding spirituality into all walks of life. We are the light and co-creators with God, and it is our responsibility to use this light to bring peace, love, happiness, and abundance to the Planet.

Elsie Nevins Morgan The Angel of Presence

The mind is to be a reservoir of Light — free, ready to give color and form, ready to speak from Wisdom's Source. Silence is the opening note. The Indwelling Light illumines the heart and mind, loosening the sightless, stormswept self. The freeing of Light, of God's own Life within, is the means of self-expression — not self-filled expression — but God-like freedom.

Unknown

No deep darkness in the world
Can overcome the light.
A single candle flame will burn
Against the darkest night.
Let all the world of darkness come ...
Resentment, envy, fears.
Then light the single flame of love
the darkness disappears!