On December 6, 2022, the Office of the Chaplain and Religious and Spiritual Life invited the entire HDS community to Seasons of Light.
As the nights grow longer and the days shorter, this beloved annual multireligious service honors the interplay of holy darkness and light in the world’s religious traditions, including choral and instrumental music, readings by HDS students, the ritual kindling of many flames, and communal prayers and songs.
Full transcript:
[CHIME]
[VOCALIZING]
[CHIME]
SPEAKER 1: We are the east, and you are the west. We begin.
ALL: On the thresholds of the poem, take off the dust. The power that be from your soul, set aside passion, so as not to defy our words. Into this space, step alone. And the tenderness of beings will enfold you and will lead you toward the dark as [INAUDIBLE]. There, whatever was [INAUDIBLE] will return and stand the radiance so you and I can find each other.
[SINGING "TOV L'HODOT L'HASHEM"]
SPEAKER 2: After a still winter night, I awoke with the impression that some question had been put in me, which I have been endeavoring in vain to answer in my sleep as what, how, when, where? But there was dawning nature and who all the creatures live, looking into my broad windows with serene and satisfied face and no question on her lips.
I awoke to an answer to question, to nature and daylight. The snow line deep on the Earth dotted with young pines and the very slope of the hill on which my house is placed seemed to say forward. Nature puts no question, answers [INAUDIBLE] mortals ask. She has long ago taken her resolution.
Oh, prince, our eyes contemplate with admiration and transmit to the soul the wonderful and varied spectacle of the universe. The night veils without doubt a part of this glorious creation. But day comes to us, this great work, which extends from Earth, even into the plains of the ether.
SPEAKER 3: [NON-ENGLISH SINGING]
With the wish to achieve the highest aim which services even the wishful [INAUDIBLE], I shall train myself to, at all times, cherish sentient beings as supreme. Whenever I interact with others, I will view myself as inferior to all. And I will train myself to hold others superior from the depths of my heart.
During all my activities, I will probe my mind. And as soon as an affliction arises, since it endangers myself and others, I will train myself to confront it directly and avert it. When I encounter beings of unpleasant character and those oppressed by intense negative karma and suffering as to finding a treasure or precious jewels, I will train myself to cherish them, for they are so rarely found.
When others out of jealousy treat me wrongly with abuse and slander, I shall train to take the defeat upon myself and offer the victory to others. Even if one whom I have helped or in whom I have placed great hope, gravely mistreats me in hurtful ways, I will train myself to view him as my sublime teacher.
In brief, I will train myself to offer benefit and joy to all my mothers, both directly and indirectly, and respectfully take upon myself all the hurts and pains of my mothers. By ensuring that all this remains undefined from the stains of [INAUDIBLE], mundane concerns and by understanding all things as illusions, I will train myself to be free of the bondage of [INAUDIBLE].
[HUMMING]
SPEAKER 4: (SINGING) The fire is burning. The long night draws new. All who need comfort will come by here. We'll dance neath the stars and toast the past year, for the spirit of solstice is still living here.
ALL: (SINGING) We'll come for our blessings for the [INAUDIBLE] with snow, ice, the blanket covering the ground. Praise to the mother for the life [INAUDIBLE]. She'll wake up to warm us again in the spring. The poor and the hungry, the sick and the lost-- these are our children, no matter the cause. Come by the fire, the moments to share, for the spirit of solstice is still living here.
Fire is burning, fire is burning, [INAUDIBLE] the comfort are welcomed by me. I see the stars [INAUDIBLE] the past year, for the spirit of solstice is still living here. The spirit of solstice is still living here.
SPEAKER 5: Let ruin end here. Let him find honey where there was once a slaughter. Let him enter the lion's cage and find a field of lilacs. Let this be healing. And if not, let it be.
SPEAKER 6: Let's be clear about this. It isn't the same as being sick and getting better. It isn't changing your mind at the last minute and pushing away from the brink. The only way to be born again is to die. The phoenix doesn't just go up in a blaze of glory. It feels the fire lick up and sizzle every feather, until each quill becomes a column of flame carried straight to the core.
Whatever the legend of rebirth, there is always a time in the fire under the ground, hanging on the cross or the tree. Don't skip over that part of the story. If you would be reborn, you have to die. But what, then? After the dying, how are we to rise again into new life? The Earth, the hero, the God, you and I. How does any of us find our way back from the valley of the shadow? The same way we die-- walk into the light.
SPEAKER 7: "The endurance of darkness is the preparation for great light." Saint John of the Cross. The Peace of Wild Things. "When despair for the world grows in me and I wake in the night at the least sound in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be, I go and lie down with a wood drake. Where he rests in his beauty on the water and the great heron feeds.
I come into the piece of wild things who do not tax their lives with forethought of grief. I come into the presence of still water. And I feel above me the day blind stars waiting with their light. For a time, I rest in the grace of the world. And I'm free." Wendell Berry.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
SPEAKER 8: (SINGING) Here in the quietness, we wait by the firelight. The night is [INAUDIBLE]. And we are tired. The cold winds blow. And here, we are. We open up our dreams. Open up your hearts.
And all that sad hopes that we pressed beneath the frozen winter soil. The burning in our hearts-- we can't define. And you and I are cradling this flame that does not die. A cold and waxing candle in the darkest starless night. Oh, the sun will come again, and we will shine.
And in the meantime by the fireplace, we hold this hope in tension with our frozen windowpanes and talking toys. And we whisper in the night and to never ask [INAUDIBLE] tasks and tardy dawns and not the sum of any here. And in the shadows all our fears are covered silently by the snow.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
(SINGING) In the meantime by the fireplace, we hold this hope and tension with our frozen windowpanes and darkened doors. And we whisper in the night and never cross a river [INAUDIBLE] and tardy dawns and not the sum of any here. And in the shadows of our fears are covered silently in the darkness [INAUDIBLE] are covered silently. In the shadows, all our fears are covered silently by the snow.
SPEAKER 9: Live up to the light, thou hast, and more will be granted thee. Give over thine own willing, give over by own running, give over thine own desiring to know or be anything, and sink down to the seed which God sows in the heart, and let that grow in thee, and be in thee, and breathe in thee, and act in thee, and thou shall find by experience that the Lord knows that and loves and owns that and will lead it to the inheritance of life, which is its portion.
SPEAKER 10: I form light and create darkness. I bring prosperity and create disaster. I, the Lord, do all these things. You heavens above rain down my righteousness. Let the cloud shower it down, let the Earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness flourish with it. I, the Lord, have created it.
God did not abolish darkness at creation. God added light. But for many, darkness symbolizes all that is negative, harmful, evil, and fearful. God gave equal importance and prominence to darkness and light. And all life, including human life, begins and develops in the dark.
We go through the darkness of sinfulness and learn that Christ, the light, is our Redeemer. We struggle through the darkness of crisis and problems to learn that Christ is our protector and deliverer. We face the darkness of death and learn that God grants eternal life. We may weep in the morning, but joy comes in the morning. We go through the darkness of sin, testing, and temptation. But Jesus Christ brings us to the light of salvation.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
SPEAKER 11: This chant from France is intended to be a song meditation, a song prayer. And we invite you to sing along with us, with the choir. And as we sing it, I invite you to listen. Whether you choose to sing or stay silent, I invite you to listen to the words, to what lies underneath the words around them, behind them. Listen to the space between the words. We will sing this again and again for several minutes. So I invite you to settle in, into the music and into the text.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
(SINGING) Our darkness is never darkness in your sight. The deepest night is clear as the daylight. In our darkness, there's never darkness in your sight. The deepest night is clear as the daylight. In our darkness, there's never darkness in your sight.
The deepest night is clear as the daylight. In our darkness, there's never darkness in your sight. The deepest night is clear as the daylight. In our darkness, there's never darkness in your sight. The deepest night is clear as the daylight.
In our darkness, there's never darkness in your sight. The deepest night is clear as the daylight. In our darkness, there's never darkness in your sight. The deepest night is clear as the daylight. In our darkness, there's never darkness The deepest night is clear as the daylight. The darkness is never darkness in your sight.
The deepest night is clear as the daylight. Our darkness is never darkness in your sight. The deepest night is clear as the daylight. Our darkness is never darkness in your sight. The deepest night is clear as the daylight. Our darkness is never darkness in your sight. The deepest night is clear as the daylight.
SPEAKER 12: On the coldest night of winter, the shortest day of the year, the villagers of a small town gathered at their rather rundown inn to share the fire and keep one another company through the long night. They bemoan the scant harvest, prayed fervently for an expedient spring, and toasted meager cups of steaming drink to brighter days ahead.
Suddenly, the door to the inn swung wide, blowing in a mass of snow, a blast of cold, and the cloaked figure of a traveler. The villagers were agog. All local families were accounted for. And who would travel in weather like this? Might be sick, whispered some. Let a draft in, grumbled others. No good business comes so late at night, barked the innkeeper. State your cause and begone. We have no wish for trouble.
I'm a simple traveler, the figure said, voice choked with cold, looking for a safe place to sleep and a hot meal. We may find you room to rest, the innkeeper replied, but there's not much to eat. Most of us barely get by. You have my pity and my thanks, the traveler replied. But you needn't worry about feeding me. In fact, I will be cooking.
Without further invitation, they produced from their pack a large iron pot and set it over the fire. Someone, though no one saw who, slipped a pitcher of water next to the fireplace, which the traveler poured in wordlessly. The villagers were curious. What's that? It's nothing at all, scoffed another. It's soup. Stone soup.
With the water at a rolling boil, the traveler took out a small silk pouch from which was produced a small round stone, which was dropped into the water without much fuss. The traveler stirred the pot, inhaling deeply. I do like stone soup, but I wish I'd had cabbage to add, to thank for your hospitality with something truly special.
After a moment's silence, another set of hands placed an admittedly rather runty cabbage next to the traveler. Still, other hands chopped it apart expertly. The traveler smiled, adding cabbage to the pot. These leaves are an extraordinary color. The hands that grew this cabbage must make miracles in good harvests, they said, and kept stirring. But an onion would really-- and an onion appeared. A few bruised potatoes lovingly paired to usefulness, and so on, and so forth. You're smart. You get the gist.
Before long, the soup pot was filled to the brim. And the inn was filled with laughter and bellies filled with food. More hands played a fiddle. Others used candlelight to throw shadow stories on the walls. Still, others washed up, and so on, and so on, until the long night passed in music, warmth, and miraculously, light. May we be the sun to one another. May we ask for what we need. May we make soup together.
SPEAKER 13: [NON-ENGLISH SINGING]
From untruth, lead me to truth. From darkness, lead me to light. From death, lead me to immortality.
SPEAKER 14: [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
SPEAKER 15: With the emergence of the true Guru Nanak, the mist cleared. And the light scattered all around as if at the sunrise, the stars disappeared and the darkness dispelled. With the roar of the lion in the forest, the flocks of escaping deer now cannot have endurance. Wherever Baba Nanak put his feet, a place of worship was established.
Places around the world now have been renamed on the name of Nanak. Every home has become a place where [INAUDIBLE] are always sung. Baba Nanak liberated all four directions of the Earth. [INAUDIBLE], or Guru Nanak, has emerged in the [INAUDIBLE], in this dark age.
SPEAKER 16: [NON-ENGLISH SINGING]
Seasons of change, seasons of light. As we welcome the day, we know soon will come night.
[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
Hang on, let me say that properly.
[NON-ENGLISH SINGING]
The Quran tells us that our rhythms are ruled by heavenly bodies. And yet, bits and pieces of our souls sit reticence and resistance as if in quiet rebellion. We think we control more than we actually do. We set alarms, schedule meetings, and sit in self-content, convinced that where we are is a result of our actions, our own planning, our own doing.
And then COVID hits. And that's how you know God has a sense of humor. Within weeks, life, as we knew it, ended. And another season began. I spent much of that time staring at the sky, counting stars, and counting blessings. I invite you to count with me.
Blessing number one-- breath in my body. Blessing number two-- air in my lungs. Blessing number 3-- a roof over my head. Blessing number 4-- the more you look, the more there's more. Stargazing in the solstice, surrendering all of the small things, stargazing as my soul sits with all the ways in which my soul's been split.
[NON-ENGLISH SINGING]
[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
[NON-ENGLISH SINGING]
And all I see are blessings.
(SINGING) All I see is lessons, got no time for stressing, don't believe in failures in my life. It's only lessons. They just make room for what I'm on now. I ain't got a clue. But I know the one who does know how. Oh, Oh. It's like I'm learning a game with a maker I already know now.
Destiny has my name. No, it's coming. It'll never go out. I know that we're all going to be all right. We're going to make it through if it takes all night. No matter what the odds may bring on me, I can see the blessings coming. Blessings on blessings. Yeah, I can feel the blessings coming on, blessings on blessings. Yeah, I can feel the blessings coming on in.
And I can see the blessings. I can feel your presence leaning on the change in my heart for your endeavors. Pray of your reflection. I'm needing your direction. Islam brought the connection. And through Jesus is perfection. Life then hit me crazy, been more stressed than ever, living like whatever. Through the rain, I feel you drawing closer. Lord, make me better, take me, shape me, use me. I am yours. Take me, break me for the glory of the Lord.
OK, not only does he hold me when I'm down and feel like folding, he my coach. When I'm the goalie, never lonely, got that hoping. And he who holy, holy, holy. Keep that rugged cross all on me, need that spirit to control me. Seek that word to come and mold me. Yeah, it's like I can feel the blessings coming my way. Yeah.
It's like I can feel the blessings coming on. And I know everything is going to be all right. We're going to make it through if it takes all night. No matter what the odds may bring our way, I can see the blessings coming on in. Blessings on blessings. Yeah, I can see the blessings coming on in. Blessings on blessings. Yeah. Yeah. I can feel the blessings coming on in. Yeah. Thank you.
SPEAKER 17: Good evening. I am not [INAUDIBLE]. I am filling in for [INAUDIBLE], our friend who could not make it tonight. Dark things open my eyes, raise my hand, not my fingers. They are close and far away, beyond nine hills in a hidden refuge. Night is their kingdom. And this day just breaking is their cloak of light. No force can cancel them, untangle them, explain them. They stay where they are-- in our chests, murmuring our hearts.
SPEAKER 18: Even this late, it happens-- the coming of love, the coming of light. You wake and the candles are lit as if by themselves. Stars gather, dreams pour into your pillows, sending up warm bouquets of air. Even this late, the bones of the body shine and tomorrow's dust flares into breath.
SPEAKER 19: [NON-ENGLISH SINGING]
Indeed, we have sent down to you clear revelations, along with examples of those who had gone before you and a lesson to the God fearing. A law is a light of the heavens and the Earth. His light is like a niche in which there is a lamp. The lamp is in a crystal.
The crystal is like a shining star lit from the oil of a blessed olive tree, located neither to the east, nor the west, whose oil would almost glow, even without being touched by fire. Light upon light. A law guides whoever he wills to his light. And a law sets forth parables for humanity, for a law has perfect knowledge of all things.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
SPEAKER 20: (SINGING) It's been a long, dark night. And I've been waiting for the morning. It's been a long, hard fight. And I see a brand new day dawning. And I've been looking for the sunshine, because I ain't seen it in so long.
Everything is going to work out just fine. Everything is going to be all right that's been all wrong. Because I can see the light of a clear blue morning. I can see that I have a brand new day. I can see the light-- have a clear blue morning.
Everything is going to be all right. It's going to be OK. It's been a long, long time since I've known the taste of freedom. And those clinging vines, they held me bond, well, I don't need them.
I feel like a captured eagle. You know an eagle is bound to fly. Now that I have won my freedom like an eagle, I am eager for the sky. Because I can see, I can see the light of the clear blue morning. I can see the light of a brand new day. I can see the light of a clear blue morning. Everything is going to be all right. It's going to be OK.
I can see. I can see the clear blue morning. I can see the light of a morning. I can see the light. I can see a brand new day. I can see the light of a brand new day. I can see. I can see the light of a clear blue-- I can see the light. Everything is going to be all right. It's going to be OK. Everything is going to be all right. It's going to be OK.
SPEAKER 21: The angels rejoice over you. The alms of your prayers have come up into the ears of the Lord God, the holiest of all, through Jesus Christ, his Son, he that ascended up on high as also, he descended below all things in that he comprehended all things, that he might be in and through all things, the light of truth, which truth shineth.
This is the light of Christ as also he is in the sun, and the light of the sun, and the power thereof by which it was made. As also, he is in the moon, and is the light of the moon, and the power thereof by which they were made, it was made, as also the light of the stars, and the power thereof by which they were made, and the Earth, also, and the power thereof, even the Earth upon which you stand.
And the light which shineth, which giveth you light, is through him who enlighteneth your eyes, which is the same light that quickeneth your understandings, which light precedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space, the light which is in all things, which giveth life to all things, which is the law by which all things are governed, even the power of God who sitteth upon his throne, who is in the bosom of eternity, who is in the midst of all things.
SPEAKER 22: Luke, Chapter 2, verse 10. "But the angel said to them, do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people." What use is an angel glued to the canvas of a painting? All the Black angels live on Earth.
Every protest card is a prayer shouted into the ear of heaven. Celestial wings must be traded in for feet that can march to protest injustice. Somebody has got to let gravity win. For things to change on the ground, the angel must fall from glory. And every freedom chant is a scream stuck in the throat of an angel.
What use is an angel sculpted in marble? Every Black angel is covered in flesh, because somebody has got to bleed for God to pay attention-- Maya Angelou, Mandala, and their mothers. Because the world needs people with spine, people who do good things with their pain. Somebody has got to trade in soft feathers for thick skin. The revolution will not be glorious. It is a hellish thing to watch a man beg for his life.
If another unarmed man, Black man cries out for his mother in the streets, God will hear. And she will flood the entire world. What use is an angel trapped in a glass case? Every Black angel lives here. And instead of white robes, plenty of hats, teachers and activists, nurses, janitors, and little Black girls with Afros for halos.
SPEAKER 23: So we invite you to sing with us. We will begin with call and response. And then after the musical break in the middle, we'll all sing together.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
(SINGING) We are opening up in sweet surrender to the infinite love light of the one.
ALL: (SINGING) We are opening up in sweet surrender to the infinite love light of the one.
SPEAKER 23: (SINGING) We are opening. We are opening.
ALL: (SINGING) We are opening. We are opening.
SPEAKER 23: (SINGING) We are opening up in sweet surrender to the infinite love light of the one.
ALL: (SINGING) We are opening up in sweet surrender to the infinite love light of the one.
SPEAKER 23: (SINGING) We are opening. We are opening.
ALL: (SINGING) We are opening. We are opening.
SPEAKER 23: (SINGING) We are opening up in sweet surrender to the infinite love light of the one.
ALL: (SINGING) We are opening up in sweet surrender to the infinite love light of the one.
SPEAKER 23: (SINGING) We are opening. We are opening. We are opening up in sweet surrender to the infinite love light of the one. We are opening up in sweet surrender to the ultimate love light of the one. We are opening. We are opening. We are opening. Opening.
We are opening up in sweet surrender to the ultimate love light of the one. We are opening up in sweet surrender to the infinite love light of the one. We are opening. We are opening. Opening. We are opening. We are opening up in sweet surrender to the infinite love light of the one. We are opening up in sweet surrender to the infinite love light of the one.
We are opening. We are opening. We are opening. We are opening. We are opening up in sweet surrender to the infinite love light of the one, opening up in sweet surrender to the infinite love light of the one. We are opening. We are opening. We are opening. We are opening.
[HUMMING]
Sweet surrender.
[HUMMING]
Sweet surrender.
[HUMMING]
Sweet surrender.
SPEAKER 24: The benediction is taken from Michelle Obama's recent book, The Light We Carry-- Overcoming in Uncertain Times. She writes, "I've learned it's OK to recognize that self-worth comes wrapped in vulnerability, and that what we share as humans on this Earth is the impulse to strive for better, always, and no matter what. We become bolder in brightness.
If you know your light, you know yourself. You know your own story in an honest way. In my experience, this type of self-knowledge builds confidence which, in turn, breeds calmness and an ability to maintain perspective, which leads finally to being able to connect meaningfully with others. And this, to me, is the bedrock of all things.
One light feeds another. One strong family lends strength to more. One engaged community can ignite those around it. That is the power of the light we carry. So these four things and on certain times, we become bolder in brightness. If we know our light, we know ourselves.
One engaged community can ignite those around it. That is the power of the light we carry. May you carry the power of this light with you as you leave this special space and serve one another and then the whole world." Have a wonderful holiday season. Amen.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
SPEAKER 25: (SINGING) I love [INAUDIBLE]. [INAUDIBLE] I've waited [INAUDIBLE] long as I live. [INAUDIBLE] I'll hasten to his throne. Oh, I love [INAUDIBLE] long as I live and troubles thrive. I'll hasten to his throne.
I'll hasten to his throne. I'll hasten to his throne. I'll hasten to his throne. I'll hasten to his throne. Oh, I'll hasten to his throne. I'll hasten to-- I'll hasten to his throne. I'll hasten to his throne. I'll hasten to his throne.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
[CHEERING]
[APPLAUSE]
[MUSIC PLAYING]
SPEAKER 26: Yeah. Thank you for accompanying us on the violin. Man, that sounded beautiful. That was good music.