The Peru Gazette

 Introduction by John T. Ryan

This past Christmas a blown circuit breaker at St. Augustine’s Church resulted in the Christmas Eve and Christmas Masses being celebrated without the benefit of electric power.  A few candles were the only lights that illuminated the Church. Peru resident Rachel Daly, a student at Seton Catholic, wrote to the North Country Catholic newspaper and expressed her feelings very beautifully.  Please read her letter.

 On Christmas Eve, St. Augustine’s Church in Peru, NY was ready to celebrate the birth of our Lord. The decorations were up, the Christmas spirit was alive and ready, and cars were beginning to pull up in the parking lot, filled with parishioners anticipating a beautiful Mass. I arrived early, prepared for an ordinary Christmas Eve, but as I walked up the sidewalk, something seemed a little out of place. I opened the door and found the church completely in darkness due to an apparent power outage.

Sure enough, problems with a transformer had left the church and four other buildings on the street without electricity. However, Mass was still set to be held by the light of the candles, and as the congregation streamed into the building, a blindfold of darkness seemed to only slightly impede the process of finding a seat. Things proceeded remarkably well, and soon Mass had begun as usual, heralded by the opening notes of “O Come, All Ye Faithful” played on the piano.

As I looked around, I was somewhat surprised to find that the absence of lighting did not present a problem. Rather, it contributed a special element to the celebration of the Mass, making the evening different from Christmas Eves of the past. The power outage freed the entire congregation from distraction, simplifying everything and drawing all attention to the power of the Mass itself. It almost purified the experience, making it even more moving than before and bringing to light the simple value of each act, each word, and each song.

There was no opportunity to look around and evaluate what others were wearing, nor was there opportunity to see who was uncharacteristically present for the holiday. It didn’t matter if you hadn’t been to church in weeks or months. Everyone became a part of the body, with an equal chance to experience Christmas as it was meant to be. In its own way, this temporary darkness was a very special gift.

Fittingly, the words we heard in the first reading were, “The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light,” Isaiah 9:2. I thought about this, realizing that the meaning of “light” in this particular case was not what we see in strands, strung around Christmas trees, or glinting off garlands. That kind of light disappears when the power goes out. The light referred to in this passage was the kind that we can see even when the fluorescent bulbs go out and the electricity stops. It’s the light that Christ brings into each and every moment that He illuminates for us, and it’s what shines outward from us when we live in simple love for one another. It’s the common denominator that ties us all together.

That night the church was lit more brightly than I had ever seen it. It was lit by the songs of the choir and the hearts of the people. As the future comes toward us, it is my hope that the Church will always remain lit by Christ in the way that St. Augustine’s was on a beautiful Christmas Eve.

Sincerely,
Rachel Daly