Light is at the heart of Bonaventure’s spiritual vision. Bonaventure’s God is a fountain of love and light. Christ is the light of the world, illuminating and freeing our spirits to solidarity with and service to humankind, grounded in unity with God. The beginning of the Gospel of John joins theology, spirituality, and practice. In this spirit, Bonaventure describes God’s light shining in all things, a fountain of light and love, an inexhaustible stream flowing through creation. Our lives, like the roots of a tree, are nourished by “an ever-flowing fountain that becomes a great and living river.”
Contemplate the following words, reading them a few times in silence and noticing where they inspire you today.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with
God. All things came into being through him, and without
him not one thing came into being. 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…. The true light, which enlightens everyone,
was coming into the world. (John 1:1–5, 9)
—from the book Head, Heart, and Hands: An Introduction to Saint Bonaventure
by Bruce Epperly
