I am the light of the world, says the Lord; whoever follows me will have the light of life. (Jn 8:12)

The Scripture readings for the Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time contrast the light of Christ with the darkness that surrounds us in the world.

In the first reading (Is 58:7-10), the prophet Isaiah connects what we would call works of justice and mercy with enlightened spiritual experience. He says:

If you remove from your midst oppression, false accusation and malicious speech; if you bestow your bread on the hungry and satisfy the afflicted; then light shall rise for you in the darkness, and the gloom shall become for you like midday. (Is 58:7-10)

If we respond generously to the needs of our sisters and brothers, without seeking any reward for ourselves, the light of Christ will shine through us. The result will be healing and hope for those who are afflicted with any material or spiritual suffering. Whatever personal doubts or depression (“darkness or gloom”) that we may be tempted to experience in our daily lives will be dispelled by the hope-filled midday light that our Christ-like actions make possible.

The refrain for Sunday’s Responsorial Psalm (Ps 112) carries this theme forward. “The just man is a light in darkness to the upright.” And, so, we pray: “Light shines through the darkness for the upright; he is gracious and merciful and just.” The psalm continues: “His heart is steadfast; he shall not fear. Lavishly he gives to the poor; His justice shall endure forever; his horn shall be exalted in glory.”

Goodness shines, and the glory of the Lord is revealed, wherever justice and mercy overcome the negative attributes of inequity, unkindness, intolerance and self-centeredness. Evil is persistent darkness and gloom, but it can be overcome by an infusion of Christ’s light of goodness and truth.

In the second reading for the Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time (1 Cor 2:1-5), St. Paul tells the Church in Corinth that his own light—his personal skills, talents and intellectual abilities—are not equal to the task he has been given.

When I came to you, brothers and sisters, proclaiming the mystery of God, I did not come with sublimity of words or of wisdom. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified. (1 Cor 2:1-2)

In order to effectively proclaim the mystery of God, a different kind of power is needed. No amount of human rhetoric or artful persuasion is sufficient to illuminate the minds and hearts of people who walk in darkness. As a result, St. Paul insists that:

I came to you in weakness and fear and much trembling, and my message and my proclamation were not with persuasive words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of Spirit and power, so that your faith might rest not on human wisdom but on the power of God. (1 Cor 2:3-5)

What is this “demonstration of Spirit and power” but the light of Christ that shines through St. Paul? Paul was the greatest of missionary disciples; he was an evangelist whose words and witness of faith have continued to enlighten and uplift the minds and hearts of God’s people throughout the millennia.

By his words and example, Sunday’s Gospel reading (Mt 5:13-16) is affirmed:

You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father. (Mt 5:14-16)

Every baptized Christian, regardless of our state in life, is called to provide the same kind of missionary discipleship as St. Paul and all the saints who have given witness to Christ.

We are all asked to be bearers of the light of Christ who shine brightly in our world’s darkness. We accomplish this not by our own wisdom or power, but by allowing the grace of God to shine brilliantly in and through us in the simplest but most powerful ways.

When we take to heart the words of Isaiah, when we resist every form of oppression, when we refuse to engage in malicious gossip, when we feed the hungry, and satisfy the temporal needs of our sisters and brothers, then the light of Christ can shine in us and dispel the darkness of the world around us.

May Christ our light shine in us always. May our words and actions truly reveal the Divine light. And may God alone be praised as the true source of goodness, power and heavenly glory. †