Tuesday, March 15
“For Thine is the Kingdom, and the Power and the Glory forever.”
Our Ash Wednesday Soup and Writing Workshop began with six pieces of flip-chart paper taped to the windows in the Susan Dickerman Hall. On each page was a line from the Lord’s Prayer. The participants took markers and wrote words, phrases and questions on the pages, whatever came to our minds as we thought of each line. While we ate our soup, we went over what we had written, reflecting on the deeper meaning of the prayer.
When we got to the final line, “For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever,” I noted that someone had written the word “radiance” on the page. I asked about it.
Norma Hart spoke up. “I remember something Father Don said last year–that the word ‘glory’ really should be translated as ‘radiance.’”
Her comment stuck with me. We talk about the glory of winning the Super Bowl, the glory of victory in battle. Glory, at least as I envision it, is big and flashy.
Radiance has a different feeling. Radiance starts small. I envision a pinpoint of light that illuminates the darkness. I think of our candlelight service at Christmas, the light from a single candle growing as it is shared. I imagine a small act of kindness that spurs another and another until lives are changed. I picture the look on a teenager’s face when she realizes she has something to contribute and can’t wait to share it. Radiance is a glimmer of hope that shines through despair.
The word “radiance” fits my understanding of who Jesus was and who Jesus is. Two thousand years ago in Palestine, Jesus was an ordinary-looking man through whom the light of God’s love radiated for all to see. Today, God’s love radiates through all of us ordinary-looking people who have been inspired by Jesus’ life and teachings.
Thank you, Don (Father Don Pachuta from Community of St. Luke). Thank you, Norma, for this new way to understand Jesus’ glory.
Thine is the radiance forever. The light of your love radiates throughout our world. May your love radiate through our lives. Amen.
–Debbie Clark