The Light Shines in the Darkness, and the Darkness Has Not Overcome It

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden.” Mt. 5:14

I talked with a man recently who used to be a Catholic until someone persuaded him that the Church had it all wrong. Someone had used scripture to convince him that it was idolatrous to pray the rosary and that the Eucharist was a mere symbol. He thought Jesus’s claim to be the bread of life (John 6:48-55) was symbolic, yet he interpreted other biblical passages literally and out of context. He questioned the depiction of Jesus crucified, saying He should only be shown as glorified. While he seemed to have much knowledge of scripture and even of Church teaching, he lacked understanding of its meaning.

In contrast, in I Corinthians 2:1-5, Paul speaks “not with sublimity of words or of wisdom” but with fear and trembling, depending solely on the power of God. Paul teaches nothing but “Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.” Paul is one of Christ’s humble disciples, called to spread the Gospel from the very beginning of Christianity. Their words and deeds, letters and writings, became the scripture of the New Testament that this man relies on. Their firm teaching about the Eucharist and their proclamation of the death and resurrection of Christ was controversial in the beginning, too, and led to much persecution and suffering for the early Christians. But they persevered and did not sway from the hard truth about Christianity.

The Catholic Church has stood for over 2000 years, from the time it was founded by Jesus Christ and He commissioned His Apostles to teach the nations. It is the city set on the mountain; the shining light in the darkness of history, never hidden from sight; the salt that has never lost its savor (Matthew 5:13-16). The Church waits with open arms for all her children to return, as a mother waits for her wayward children.

I hope the man I spoke with will someday take another look at the Catholic Church, the Bride of Christ. The light of Christ is still burning, and the door is always open. I hope that all our prayers, conversations, and outreach will serve to hasten the day when Christians are again truly united in faith and understanding as One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.