Let Your Light Shine a Little Brighter - reflex on Luke 8:16-18

Today’s Gospel is preceded in the liturgy by the Alleluia antiphon, which is a verse from the Gospel of Matthew: “Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.” That antiphon is like a key to unlocking Jesus’ deeper meaning when he talks about lamps and light.First, what IS this light? It is faith, which brings the light of Christ’s salvation and peace. It is also Truth, manifest in the laws of virtue and protected by the teaching and laws of the Church. These are the things that we must not deliberately hide from others. Putting a vessel over a lamp not only conceals the light, but will eventually extinguish it entirely. If we conceal the light we have been given in Christ, we deprive others of that light, which is bad for them; if the light is extinguished, it is also bad for us.St. Chromatis goes so far as to say (in his treatise on the Gospel of St Matthew) that we in the Church must not fail to share the light of truth with others, or there will be dire consequences:If we fail to live in the light, we shall, to our condemnation and that of others, be veiling over and obscuring by our infidelity the light men so desperately need...That brilliant lamp which was lit for the sake of our salvation should always shine in us...Therefore, we must not hide this lamp of law and faith. Rather, we must set it up in the Church, as on a lamp stand, for the salvation of many, so that we may enjoy the light of truth itself and all believers may be enlightened. We must let our light shine, so that others will glorify God.Why WOULD we be tempted to hide the light of law and faith? Many subtle reasons can keep us from practicing our faith boldly or speaking of it plainly. We are afraid that people will judge us harshly, mock or reject us if we confront their misunderstandings or prejudices directly. Depending on the circumstances, we may hesitate to make the Sign of the Cross and pray before a meal in a restaurant, wear a crucifix around our necks, or excuse ourselves from a social event so that we can attend Mass on a Holyday of Obligation. In other circumstances, we may shy away from standing up against those who promote positions that are not compatible with our beliefs because we don’t want to offend anyone, or we may laugh at inappropriate comments because we don’t want to be seen as a dullard or a killjoy.But Christ tells us that we must let the light in us shine out to others, for their sake and for ours! We must not be afraid to BE who we ARE: children of a loving Father, who calls us bring light to every darkened place, so that all will glorify God.What about the last part of this Gospel? Jesus says "anyone who has will be given more; from anyone who has not, even what he thinks he has will be taken away." Well, if we keep oil in our lamps and let them shine, they will continue to burn; our gratitude and zeal and prayer will keep the oil filled and the fire burning. But if we hide our light and conceal the fire of faith, it will be stifled and extinguished; we may think we are keeping it safe somehow, but our fear and hesitation put out our light.How will you let your light shine a little brighter this week? How will you feed the fire of faith and share the Good News?