High in the middle of the picture, the
star of Bethlehem shines down on the scene. This is the light which the Magi
saw “in the east” or “at its rising” depending on the translation of the Bible
you are looking at. The Greek word for the east, Anatole, is the same as
the word for “rising”, because the sun rises in the east. It’s the same in
Latin. Oriens – which gives us our word ‘oriental’ also means both 'east' and 'rising'. It was widely thought
in the ancient world that when a significant person was born a new star would
appear, and a similar story had been told about the birth of Caesar Augustus,
the emperor at the time. But this baby is not an emperor, and he is not born in
a palace. The light of the star is not where people expect it to be.
The curious thing about this picture, though, is that the
star isn’t the source of the light we see in the foreground. If it were, the
front of the stable would be in shadow. Somehow the light is shining on, (or
maybe from?), the front of the stable. It
could be the light of sunrise, but looking at the shadows of the figures and
objects in front of the stable, it seems as if it is the child himself who is
the source of the light. The “glow in the dark” baby is a common feature in
nativity scenes, inspired by the Medieval mystic St Bridget of Sweden, who had
a vision of the newborn Jesus glowing with light.
What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. John 1.4-5
What does light mean to you at this darkest time of the year? Do you put special Christmas lights up?
The whole picture:
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