Today Jesus tells us two things that we are and are to be to each other, to our community / family and to the world. You are the salt of the earth and light of the world.
Let’s start with salt. Now, we know that salt does two things – it preserves and it gives flavor; it can marinate or ruin. We are well-aware when salt has lost its flavor. As one translation says the “salt becomes insipid” – is no longer capable of adding flavor or preserving.
In ancient times salt was seen as a necessity of life. In many societies salt was so highly valued that it was used for money. In Jesus’ day, however, table salt as we know it did not exist. Salt that was mined from a quarry was never completely pure. Sometimes the mined salt was so impure that it was not very salty at all. When that happened, they would cast it outside the door to harden the pathway.
Salt by itself is tiny particles and considered worthless. When added to food it becomes INVISIBLE. When that happens only THEN does it become what it was intended for: enhancing flavor. Remember, Jesus said, “You are the salt of the earth.” We can “marinate” positive or negative impressions and energy. Jesus is emphatic! He didn’t say you might be salt or you ought to be salt. He said: you ARE salt!
If salt is only a mate for the pepper shaker on the dining room table, it is denied its primary function. We, the salt of the earth, are useless until we “rub shoulders” with other grains of salt, God’s people alive. We deny the “charism” of the salt when we fail to be kind, merciful, peacemakers. If we as salt don’t rub against those who have no flavor, we never realize our potential as individuals or as community.
Now let’s turn to the image of LIGHT. In this Gospel passage Jesus describes us as light. “I am, you are the light of the world.” Light is a form of energy. It is always moving. We know Jesus is the true light and that we are only reflections or reflectors of the light. So what does that mean? Darkness is banished as soon as you hit the light. A room is flooded with light as soon as someone – or a timer – hits the switch. People are not aware of the darkness they live in if they don’t see the light. Light serves as a guide. There is a saying: “It is darkest just before the dawn.” But is it? Or does it just seem that way in contrast to the light of the rising sun?
In Jesus’ day most homes had only one small window and were commonly dark. Indoor lighting was an oil lamp that had a wick. When a light was needed the lamp was placed on a lamp stand. No one wanted to let their light go out because it took too much effort to get the wick lit again. But people dared not leave their lamp burning in the house unattended for safety reasons. When they left their homes the lamp would be taken from its lamp stand and placed under an earthen vessel where it could burn risk-free. As soon as anyone returned to the house, they would put the lamp on the stand. Thus, we have the saying: no one lights a light only to put it under a basket or a bushel.
There is story told about a man whose job was to be on the railroad tracks and warn with his light the oncoming train that the bridge was damaged. That night as the train came the man showed his lamp but the train went right into the ditch. The man was taken to court because they wanted to know why the train did not pay attention to the man’s warning of the danger ahead. “Were you on duty on the night that the train had the accident?” The man replied, “Yes sir.” “Did you have your lamp with you? “Yes, sir,” Then, the last question, “Did you wave your lamp to the train? “Yes sir!” Thus, the man was not held responsible. Later the man told his friend, “I sure am glad that the judge did not ask me if my lamp was lit.”
One last point. It is essential in the understanding of this Gospel to keep in mind the differences between salt and light. Salt works and expands itself quietly but you taste it working. Usually we don’t see the salt, unless we spill it or with a heavy hand add what we think the cook forgot. Food is made delicious by its unseen presence. On the other hand, light has a different type of effect. Light is visible – it works in the open.
People need to taste the salt and see the light. They need to see how associating with us, and with our Benedictine values, is a seasoning to their lives and a light that reveals God’s presence. We are like mirrors – we reflect the light. But in order to reflect the light we need to position our mirrors to the light and ourselves in relation to the mirror. We have to take care not to cause a glare that blinds others. We do this by studying God’s word, by praying and by Lectio with the Word and pacing our approach to others so that the truth is not a rude awakening but a gradual exposure to the lens of truth. We have to position ourselves in right relationship with God and each other so we can catch and reflect the true Light.
Unlike real salt and real light which are dead material things, we are living salt and living light. What good is salt if it has no flavor, or a light which cannot challenge the darkness? We can change. We can regain our flavor and we can rekindle our vitamin-packed and three-way wattage light with God’s WORD, our marinade.
~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB
This week we celebrate the feast of St. Scholastica – it’s a good time to ask ourselves: are we giving out light? Is our presence here in hilly Pasco County, not far from a university and a lake, a beacon to those who dwell in darkness? When we move to a different section of our monastery what light do we want to take with us – a pencil flashlight, a hurricane lantern, an LCD that slowly brightens our lives and gives light of those who come into our “realm of influence?” What light, what salt shall be bring to our new space here in our home?
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