By a departing light

By a departing light
We see acuter, quite,
Than by a wick that stays.
There's something in the flight
That clarifies the sight
And decks the rays.

—Emily Dickinson

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There’s a quote from Owen Barfield I came across once that has always struck me as significant: asked, in his later years, what he had gained from a lifetime’s study of the work of Rudolf Steiner, Barfield replied something to the effect of,  “a profound appreciation for the cycle of the year.”

Therein is implied one of the great “re-discoveries” or “renewals” of modern life brought about by the work and insights of Rudolf Steiner, a subtle one, in a way, related to the relationship of the individual human soul to the YEAR, meaning the cyclical time-space relationship of the Earth to the Sun. (So much of everyday life is truly, literally, “cosmic,” when you stop and think about it . . . )

Steiner’s Calendar of the Soul is of course a big part of this renewed insight, as is his stress on a deeper understanding of the Festivals of the Year. The point being, of course, not to naively embrace whatever tradition one finds oneself within (not that there is anything wrong with that, and this statement is of course not applicable to children), but to discover, for oneself, the truth and beauty of the human traditions, the festivals, in their relationship to the individual human being, to communities of people, to outer nature, and to the greater universe. This is what is meant by “renewal.”

This morning is the second Sunday of Advent—for some, another stage on the journey through the profoundest darkness of the year—still darker as the days go, but another candle afire to light the way toward Christmas.

Today also happens to be the Feast Day of St. Nicholas—may his spirit of generosity and compassion grace your home (even if not your shoes).

“Throughout the year we fulfill the common tasks and duties of daily life, and at these times of Festival we turn our attention to the links which bind us with eternity. And although daily life is fraught with many a struggle, at these times a feeling awakens within us that above all the strife and turmoil there is peace and harmony.”

—Rudolf Steiner, The Festivals and their Meanin