The Way of Light

“In the beginning I call upon the First Beginning, from whom every ray of light streams down as from the Father of Lights from whom each act of giving is the best and each gift perfect, that is, the timeless Father through His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.” - St. Bonaventure, Itinerarium, Prol. 1.1

St Bonaventure here begins the journey of his mind into God in much of the same way that St John began his gospel: referring to Jesus as the light. And he is light that gives all light to us, for John tells us, “What came to be through him was life, and that life was the light of the whole human race. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness cannot overcome it.” (John 1:4-5). It may be interesting to find two completely different writings starting with this theme of light, but both St Bonaventure and St John are beginning their journeys, one with God, the other with Jesus, and all journeys start with light.

This past year of formation I took part in a mission year with my classmates, and during this year I spent my time in southern Arizona, in a little town called Elfrida. I spent many days crossing the border into Agua Prieta, Mexico, to work at a migrant resource center, for migrants who had been found in the desert without documents and were deported back to Mexico. I believe that there is this perception that there’s so much on the American side of the border, such as big cities or towns, but there isn’t. It’s desert. And more desert. Sometimes you come across a small little village, like Elfrida, but other than that, it’s desert. I would be in the car driving to ministry or to the store during the day and think to myself, “how can any migrant possibly make it to where they are going?” But I remember being at a prayer service one night at the border wall and stopping at the store before I headed home, and there was darkness all around. I thought the desert during the day was bad, but at night it was much worse. And most migrants try to cross the desert at night not because it is safer, but because it’s harder to get caught. But even in that darkness, there is light. People do live in the desert, and with living there just like anywhere else, there is light on houses. Every mile or so, you see the light of a house. We aren’t walking around in the desert at night, so why would we need these lights outside? Who needs to see?

"The Way of St Clare" Oil on Canvas

This experience reminded me of my experience of pilgrimage to Assisi. One night we retraced the way through the city in which Clare left her home in the middle of the night to join Francis and the brothers at the Portiuncola, in the valley below the city. The journey through the city is easy, but once you reach the walls of the city, it is similar to the desert at night: darkness, accompanied by a few house lights here and there. I remember standing outside the gates of Assisi that night with the true realization of what Clare actually did that night so many years ago, but one thought also came to mind: how would she have made it there in the darkness of the night?

This is where the faith of Clare and the faith of the migrants intersect, the two faiths of two different people become one, for their faith in Jesus, the one who is light, is so strong that Jesus imprints this light on their journey, and illuminates their path for them. And this faith and this light is so strong that no darkness can even come close to overcoming it, because if Jesus really is, “the way, the truth, and the life,” (John 14:6) then whoever believes that He can bring them to a better life will be given it, and will be given the light to get there. When God made us in his image, He gave us this light, so that we could be this light so that we may accompany our brothers and sisters. It is in this way that when we believe we are this light that the light never leaves us. Jesus is the light, and we too are the light, because we are made in His image.

And so our journey begins with light, and that light is “the resurrection and the life,” (John 11:25) and as long as we believe in that light, we will see it, and it will lead us to everlasting light.