Memorial of Saint Pius of Pietrelcina, Priest
Scripture and Tradition love to link God and light. John discusses God as light. The Nicene Creed identifies the divinity of Jesus through the phrase, “God from God, Light from Light.” Also, our first reading today describes God as being in “unapproachable light.”
We don’t just use light to describe God, but also describe a believer’s journey with God. Believers who have passed from this world are called the Saints in the Light. We speak of receiving God’s guidance as being shown a light or having a guiding light. Even in the beginning of our Christian walk we speak of light. A person’s conversion might be called an enlightenment and in the Early Church, Enlightenment was a synonym for someone’s Baptism. All of this is without bringing up the rich light imagery used in our prayer throughout the liturgical calendar, though the practice of lighting a candle to remind us of God’s presence is worth nothing.
When we have these positive light images, why does our reading from 1 Timothy describe God’s light as unapproachable? I think there are a few points for reflection for us.
Unapproachable should not be equated with stand-offish. God is not unapproachable because he has set himself on Mt. Olympus to stay away from those pesky (and sometimes stinky) humans. He is unapproachable, because his vastness, his reality as the creator who supersedes space and time, means that while he can ‘be near’ to us, we have no physical means of approaching him. There is no distance I can cover or amount of time I can travel that will let me close the gap with God.
Yet we believe in God’s nearness, and the idea that Jesus is God among us. Why? Because though we have a God that is unapproachable, we have a God who desires to approach us. We are wholly incapable, but he is both capable and willing. However, not only can we not approach him because of inability, but we also carry with us the baggage we call sin.
Yet, God draws near to us despite our sin so that his light can reveal to us what we are truly clinging to, who we truly are, and who he is. This first time that we truly get a taste of God’s unapproachable light drawn near to us, we call that conversion. This experience, for me, is akin to stumbling into the pitch black bathroom in a sleepy haze, then flipping the light switch. I need the light. It will allow me to brush my teeth and prepare for the day, but my eyes have become so accustomed to the dark that the light burns. It is so good for me, but not immediately pleasing. If my eyes darkness adapted eyes could talk they would certainly complain that this light was, “unapproachable.”
May we be open to the Lord who closes the gap, our Lord who rushes to us from unapproachable light. And even when our eyes have grown accustomed to the darkness, may we be ready for the light.
- Spencer Hargadon