Light in the darkness

We took advantage of one of the last cool mornings of spring and went to the Desert Botanical Garden. Always an excellent Valley destination, the garden's latest feature is the amazing glass art of Dale Chihuly. If you have not seen it yet, it is well worth the trip.

Chihuly has taken the art of glass blowing to a new level, moving from the singular artist to a collaborative, studio team project that opens the way for massive and complex glass sculptures. As an artist, Chihuly has a gift for understanding and using light, not only in the way he prepares his glass, but also in the way his pieces are displayed. Set within the natural beauty of the Desert Botanical Garden, his work truly comes to life. As you move around his pieces, the natural light illumines the work differently, and its place among the plants changes before your eyes. I have heard that attending near twilight gives the exhibit still another dimension.

I have always been fascinated by the light. Whether it is filtering between the leaves of a shade tree, forming a picture perfect Arizona sunrise or sunset or dancing across water at night, light seems to be a sign of a continuing creation. And of course, there is the whole matter of the light that we cannot see. While our understanding of light has changed over the years, it is now understood that light is small bundles of energy.

Did the writer of Genesis know that? What was the light that was created first, even before the sun and the moon and the stars? The Big Bang? Time/space? Or simply the life force of the divine creative artist, about to spin a bundle of molten glass into something alive, dynamic and ever changing?

Easter, the primary festival of the Christian year, began last month and continues until May 31; the Feast of Pentecost. Even though light coming into the darkness is St. John's way of describing Christmas, Easter is all about the darkness being unable to overcome the light. The stories of the Passion are shrouded in darkness; there are conspiracies among the religious and political leaders; there is betrayal among his friends; there is doubt and fear. There is a dreadful execution followed by mid-day darkness and when it is finished, the "evidence" is stowed in a cave and sealed.

One need not venture far to see evidence of the dark. The global economic crisis has revealed a great deal about the darkness of greed. Across the globe human violence casts a pall on the light and dark deeds; the images of children being used as soldiers, pirates and assassins fill our minds and rob our hearts of hope.

But darkness does not get the last word. The cave is opened and in place of the darkness there is dazzling light. This light cannot be extinguished or contained. Call it what you will, this light is energy itself; life force of the divine; ever changing; ever creating; ever lasting.

Steve Hammer is the associate pastor at Esperanza Lutheran Church in Ahwatukee Foothills.