Darkness is the Dwelling Place of God — Day 22 of Simplicity
Day Twenty-two — Wonder — 25 Days of Simplicity
There is a darkness that is the dwelling place for God, an enveloping comfort to the comforter, a place where God consciousness can pause. The phrase, “The world was dark and void” (Genesis 1:2) is not an indictment. It is an indication of the state of the universe in the beginning. In the beginning there is a natal darkness. It is the womb out of which we are born, a genesis space for “Let there be” and nurture. This is a mothering darkness that nurses its offspring. I am describing a darkness that is like rich loam, that strengthens us, encourages us to push deep roots into the dark earth, where we can grow toward the light fed by the darkness…
— Barbara Holmes (from her book “Race and the Cosmos”)
For many of us, especially those of us who are white-bodied folx, it’s time for a reorientation to darkness. It’s time to move beyond the dualistic and over-simplified language and images that equate light with good and dark with bad.
As we seek to heal our bodies and our country from the disease of racism and white-body supremacy, one place we can focus our attention is our language.
Rev. Dr. Barbara Holmes does this in her book, “Race and the Cosmos.” She calls for new language with a depth and nuance informed by science as well as global indigenous and ancestral wisdom.
Astronomers and physicists are making new observations of a universe not only full of dark matter and dark energy, but dependent upon it, even birthed from it.
And many of us are humbly waking up to the essential wisdom within the practices and beliefs of indigenous traditions which were (and still often are) deemed “primitive” by dominant white culture.
As we find ourselves in this time of dark night, may it envelop us with rest and healing. May it allow us to see what the blue-light of screen would distract us from. May it allow us to turn away from and take responsibility for the harms perpetuated by the White Lie.
May we practice a diligent and grace-filled attention to our language of dark and light. And may this time of darkness be a gift in our lives. May it be a birthplace for healing and transformation.
Here’s a poem from Rainer Maria Rilke (translation by Anita Barrows & Joanna Macy)
