Bringing Christ’s Light to the world

Our readings today revolve around two main topics—witnesses and the Light of Christ. Let’s take them in order.

Jewish law in ancient times relied very heavily on two witnesses to corroborate the validity of any testimony. If you had two witnesses, their testimony was accepted as true in legal matters. No other proof generally was required. If you did not have any acceptable corroborating witnesses, testimony generally was not deemed reliable.

In our first reading from Daniel, a righteous young wife Susannah is falsely accused by two evil Jewish elders and judges of adultery after she rejects their attempts to force themselves on her. She is known to be righteous, and is much loved by those who know her, but when the two men testify against her, Susannah is sentenced to death.

The good news of course is that, being a righteous woman, Susannah calls out to God in her despair. And God, who hears the cries of his those who love him, answers her call. He “stirs up the Holy Spirit in… Daniel” who catches the evil men in their lie, and they’re condemned to death instead of Susannah.

In our Gospel reading from John, Jesus makes the statement, “I am the Light of the World.” For the Jewish leadership, these would’ve been truly blasphemous words. Light was seen as a metaphor for God. But they don’t attack Jesus head-on. They reject it out of hand simply because he doesn’t have a second witness to corroborate his testimony. Witnesses were so important to the Jewish leadership that they don’t even look at Christ’s claim itself. Basically, they sidestepped his claim.

But what about us? “I am the Light of the World. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” That’s what we hear from Christ in today’s Gospel. So let me ask you—do we believe it? And if we do believe, how does it impact our lives?

Just as in the times of Daniel and Jesus, evil is very real and very present in our world today. It ranges from simple indifference to the needs of those around us to blatant exploitation of those vulnerable and voiceless by corrupt and evil people in positions of power, but it’s very real. And, just as he heard Susannah’s cry for justice, the Lord hears the cry of the poor and persecuted today, So how will He respond?

Just as God stirred the Holy Spirit in the young boy Daniel to save Susannah from evil, he’s calling on those who truly love and follow him today. The Jews weren’t wrong about the importance of witnesses. If we truly believe and profess that Christ is the Light of the World, we need to willing to bear witness to that Light. We can start by showing up for tomorrow’s Nehemiah Action, to help give a voice to the voiceless. Let’s not stand idly by in the face of injustice, but step up and stand up for justice. Let us become the Light of Christ to the world.