Light that broke into the world on Easter morning

Anastasis (detail). Chora Church, Istanbul, 1315 

By Rev. Craig Love

“Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you” (Is. 60:1).

THROUGH a long, hard winter, I prayed for light. And each time the sun shone, I would turn my face to it, warming my eyes and skin, feeding a deep hunger within. And so it is with the greater Light that broke into the world on Easter morning. The light of Christ is not some vague hope but a daily necessity. Without it, abundant life remains but a dream.

In our tradition, this need is not left to impulse but practised in Morning and Evening Prayer. These times shape the hours between waking and sleeping. Sitting quietly, we turn our distracted hearts to what gives life, entrusting to God our hunger, our hopes, our fears. We do not wait to feel Resurrection: we rehearse what we proclaim — nothing less than a living relationship with God.

The appointed psalms at dawn and dusk, the collects echoing through the day: over time, the “same old scripts” reshape what we love. What begins as discipline becomes delight. Words passed down become words truly spoken. The winter light we seek begins to rise within us, steady and sure.

Daily prayer does not banish darkness. But it teaches us where to turn when shadows loom, training our eyes to notice grace and to expect mercy. And so, even on overcast days, Resurrection is not only a past or future event but a present reality.

The Light has risen upon us. By grace, we learn to live in it.

Rev. Dr. Craig Love is an AFP Executive and the Rector of St. Luke’s & St. Thomas the Apostle (Cambridge).