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“In the beginning God created heaven and earth. And the earth was void and empty, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the spirit of God moved over the waters.” (Genesis 1:1-2, Douay Rheims)
A simple sharing this Advent...
Today, a friend asked me about the story of Creation, found in the book of Genesis. She was confused... Why is it that in the beginning, the earth is covered with darkness...emptiness...void?
Many people continue to read Genesis as the story of creation in terms of a religion versus science debate; reading the Holy Bible as if it is a story book or a pop novel. This way of reading imposes our historical situation on the sacred text (using our finite mind to comprehend the infinite Word) and misses entirely the spiritual insights that open our heart to the “religious” meaning the story had for ancient Israel, and the spiritual meaning that God intends for us today.
This Advent, as we quietly contemplate on the lighted candles of Advent, we remind ourselves that the Word of God is alive and will continue to examine us individually today if we choose to allow it. The Word of God is Light that pierces through the darkness in our lives...bringing hope, peace, love and joy.
For instance, the Genesis’ creation day is different from the ordinary day with which we are normally familiar with these days. With the sacred scriptures, it is always about reading through the eyes of faith, patiently allowing the Word to sink into our hearts, taking quiet time to encounter the Word. The story of Creation tells us that the Spirit of God brought life and light out of chaos and darkness. The Holy Spirit is “the Lord and Giver of Life”.
Genesis, the first book of the Bible, reminds all of us today of the power and goodness of God as manifested in the creation of the world, and also the dependence of fragile creatures like us, on the dominion of the ultimate Creator; from a formless, empty void, He unconditionally fills it with life, and from darkness, He brings forth Light – in God, there is simply no darkness...only Light.
The first chapter of Genesis shares that in the beginning the world was “formless and empty.” It then proceeds to show how God sets out to fix this - first, by giving the world form and then filling it with abundance. In Days 1-3, God creates the “form” of the world - the day and the night; the sky and the sea; the land and the vegetation. In Days 4 - 6, God fills these “form” with the sun, moon and stars, the birds and the fish to fill the sky and the seas; and man and beast, which rule the land.
There is a perfect order to all these; from chaos, comes order. First God creates the “structure” of the world, then, He fills that structure with living beings. After each day of creation, God sees that His work is “good.” After the six “work days” are through, God sees that His work is “very” good. The word “very” is used to mark the end of the creation cycle.
Very briefly, Genesis is a story of faith...our faith, telling us how God chose a particular family to keep His Revelation, and how He trained His Chosen People to fulfill His mission; how His Light still shines forth today through His chosen people and still continue to radiate out simply, gently and quietly to this chaotic world that is filled with much darkness.
As we prepare for Christmas, simply remember that Christ IS “the Light that came into the world” to dispel the “darkness” of sin and to radiate the truth and love of God to each one of us. Like the poor humble shepherds, let us always be watchful and simply trusting to the quiet call of God...following the one true Light...
As His chosen people, let us always choose to create a new Genesis in the lives of others on this short journey through life..to re-create the world we live in so that we can experience heaven, here on earth today.
Let the joyful bells of Christmas resound, proclaiming the birth of the Creator, the source of life...the true Light of the world.
Maranatha! Let us simply and quietly invite Him into our lives, O Christ our Lord!
God bless all. Blessed Christmas to one and all! Peace and joy across the land! We are but ONE family...ONE colour...the colour of the ONE human race; created and hand-painted by the ONE God who loves us for eternity!
