A theology of light from the words of Jesus

Throughout the annals of theological history there has been a tension between the faith of an inner revelational experience and the faith of reason and ecclesiastical authority. The mystics seek the guidance of an inner source and prefer it over the guidance of the Church and sometimes even Scripture. The inner source is referred to as the Guiding Light, the Inner Light, or the Uncreated Light. The Light is often Jesus. Therefore, a beginning place to address the tension would be to evaluate what Jesus Himself meant by light and how Jesus used the imagery of light. The purpose of this study is to examine in context the New Testament passages in which Jesus used the imagery of light in order to formulate some of the perimeters of the revelational experience as Light. As Jesus came in history to the Jewish people and related to them in the context of their culture and language, the study will first deal with the common Jewish concept of light. This will establish the backdrop for Jesus\u27 usage. Next, the New Testament study of Jesus\u27 words using light imagery will be examined in two sections; 1. Jesus\u27 use of light imagery in Matthew and Luke, and 2. Jesus\u27 use of light imagery in John. In the Synoptics, light imagery of any kind is found only in Matthew and Luke. Outside of a few literal usages (light of a fire, white as light) and two Old Testament quotes which use light imagery, all the other references to light are spoken by Jesus. Also in John, outside of the Prologue and the witness of John the Baptist to the light, all subsequent usages are found in the words of Jesus. Apparently, Jesus had a consciousness of light that He wanted to proclaim during His earthly ministry. This presents a strong case for the necessity of careful study of Jesus\u27 use of light before the believer superimposes traditional or revelational understanding