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A Light in the Darkness

How the Akathist prayer can illumine those who struggle

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Deacon Basil Ryan BalkeOne of the largest differences between the Byzantine and Roman rites is how personal and communal prayer is done. In the Roman rite, private prayer is often the Rosary or a chaplet; however, in the Byzantine rite, these prayers are quite different. The most often privately prayed liturgy is called an Akathist.

An Akathist is a poem that states short phrases about a specific subject that help us to mediate or deepen our understanding of the subject. The most famous Akathist is the original one, dedicated to the Blessed Mother. A newer one, and the one which I would like to spend some time talking about today is the Akathist to Jesus — Light to Those in Darkness. This Akathist was written by Father Lawrence Farley several years ago, and it stands out as a particularly poignant example for our world today.

The fifth Ikos (section of the prayer) reads: “Like a child left alone in the dark, I cry out to You, Son of David, taking refuge in the shadow of Your wings until the storms of destruction pass by. Though my soul is among lions who roar out that there is no salvation for me, my heart is steadfast and I sing these praises: Jesus, sight for the blind!”

This passage obviously has a specific connection to the story of the blind beggar Bartimaeus, who sat crying out, “Jesus, son of David, have pity on me,” till Jesus stopped and gave him back his sight. This passage can’t help but remind me of how my children might react in the middle of the night. How the darkness of that time makes everything seem more serious and scarier, when, in reality, the “monster in the closet” is often just the house settling or some other minor sound.

This makes me think of my own life, when it seems like I have cried out to God for such a long period of time and there was no response. There is no salvation in my life, but the salvation that comes from Christ. The more that I can meditate on the salvation, which is only brought by Christ, the more his light will shine in my life. The more things around me tend to be put into their proper place, I can see them more clearly and appropriately.

The ninth Kontakion of the Akathist prayer under consideration reads: “The Gadarene demoniac was overwhelmed by a legion of demons within, O saving Master, and he dwelt in the deserts of despair, for no human chains were strong enough to restrain his fury. Seeing his Savior come near, he ran up to Him and bowed down before Him, imploring deliverance. When You drove out his enemies and drowned his sins in the depths of the sea, he breathed forth a sigh of peace, saying Alleluia!”

While I am not making any comment on the demonic here, I can’t help but point out how often the spiritual life and the emotional life are intertwined. As a therapist who works with the profoundly depressed, I see daily how people’s emotional and psychological struggles can consume them. When I bring up the story of the Gadarene demoniac, it can put some context on this man’s life. Obviously, he was struggling with depression of some sort, and the possession of the demon of depression led him to run away from the world and hide among the tombs. There are few better descriptions of what depression feels like than this, and in many ways it can help clients realize they are not alone in their depression. It also is important to say that Christ is the light that comes to heal the darkness of life.

My dear brothers and sisters, I hope that these short meditations on the Akathist to Jesus, Light to Those in Darkness are able to help you illume your life in some way. I would also strongly recommend that you look up this Akathist in its fullest, pray it yourself, and give it to those who are in need.

Jesus, light to those in darkness, glory to you.

FATHER DEACON BASIL RYAN BALKE is a Byzantine deacon, licensed professional counselor; director of Mount Tabor Counseling, mounttaborcounseling.com; and director of custom solutions for the Center for InMinistry Development, inministrydevelopment.com. He serves as a deacon of the Eparchy of Phoenix.

 

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