‘Now is the winter of our discontent, Made glorious summer by this son of York’. This line sits among the most famous lines of Shakespeare’s works, along of course, with, ‘When shall we three meet again,’ from Macbeth.
At this time of year, our thoughts, of course, turn to winter, the cold, and our discontent seems to build. Still, the truth is, the line from Shakespeare’s Richard III means to point to the future, the bright spring and winter that always follows the period of cold, dark, barren winter.
Perception and context, of course, are indeed king!
It is the hope of light after the dark times that sustain us in our lives, in nature as well as our daily lives. The hope that a new day will bring us a fresh start with its amber glow, the hope of a better time when winter turns to spring. Hope sustains us in the darkness, ready to start a new day in the light.
As I sit and pen these words for you to read, the country, the world, is preparing to see the results of the COP26 Climate Conference, in the hope of a better future, not just for ourselves, but for the planet on which we make our home. The images of pain, distruction, and damage to this place we call home paint a very accurate, very dire picture. Some people of the religious community often choose to suggest such events are punishment from the higher realms, a sign of the end times. The truth is, a higher being does not create these events; they are a creation of us, the human race.
To that end, it is up to us to make the changes and actions to protect the planet and the future generations that will follow.
This mission, this teaching is very much a tenet of Spiritualism. Personal Responsibility.
We must take action to correct our errors, but words only matter if our actions reflect them.
The world looks very dark right now, but perhaps this is our winter of discontent, but it can only be made glorious summer by these sons and daughters, these children of Earth.
Spiritualism focuses on shining a light in dark places, from a need for action on saving the planet to our own and each other’s lives, or indeed that last dark image that comes after we close our Earthly eyes for the last time. Then, of course, we open them again on a bright new day in a higher world, where darkness never follows.
You can find out more about that every Thursday at 7:40 pm, at Littleport Village Hall, or online on Facebook and Youtube.
May your days always be filled with light and Many Blessings.
Rev’d Nick Brown
Littleport Christian Spiritualists
