The creation story is told in two ways: scientifically and biblically. Both stories include light as a basis of creation. In science it’s the Big Bang theory, with the explosion of energy creating light. Some say we are the product of this primordial stardust. In the biblical story of Genesis 1, God created light and called it Day. This initial light is often interpreted as God’s own divine presence. This divine light or presence is with us from the energy of creation.
Light is the spiritual reality of our origins. We come from light, a divine light, which enlightens us. This inner light we often see in newborns. In July our community hosted an infant baptism. The child’s eyes were lit up with all the enthusiasm of the people, a delightful spark of life and light.
On August 11 the Poor Clares remember our founder, St. Clare of Assisi, for the insights she contributed to Franciscan development during the 12th century. St. Francis of Assisi began a tradition of friars who traveled and preached the Gospel while St. Clare, due to the social circumstances of her time and even today, was not free to travel independently.
As the men founded their mission by being sent out, the women discovered their inner resources. Clare lived in a community of about 40 nuns, all living as sisters to each other. This was one of her insights: that we are companions to one another. Community life is lived as a Gospel expression of Jesus humbly washing the feet of the disciples. The ideal is to care for each other.
The purpose of this care is respect for the inner journey of the soul. We are all longing to see our path. We have hunches, desires, hopes, and dreams. Some paths materialize; many don’t. The ones that are realized are sometimes hard ones. They have come either by the grace of the day giving us divine light or we have had to use all our energy to cause an explosion to break open the hard rocky places in ourselves to let the light of change happen.
This year marks 40 years since I professed my first vows in the order of Poor Clares. Initially I had fervor but no vision; that would come much later. The beginning occurred all on the physical and emotional level. I grew up in the environment of a parish community. The parish was our social life. I liked the smell of burning candles, processions, and songs. The mystery of the monastery captured my imagination and I believed I would be a new person.
That soon wore off. The routine had a stabilizing effect as I stumbled through the darkness of my personal and spiritual immaturity. I had hoped to bypass that part of my development. However, it took longer than expected and most of the progress came from the breaking down of my selfish ego energy. The crashing of some of those boulders brought clarity and light along with lots of pain and tears. The enduring result is the lesson of care for others in community of which washing of the feet is an example.
The inner light of spiritual development doesn’t come easily. It is hard won either by the grace of God or the force of change due to life’s circumstances. Either way, seeing clearly and the insight it brings are worth the struggle for inner spiritual light and maturity.
