The National Youth Poet Laureate who spoke at the 2021 United States presidential inauguration ended her poem with powerful words that quickly lit up social media feeds: “. . . there is always light, if only we’re brave enough to see it. / If only we’re brave enough to be it” (Amanda Gorman, “The Hill We Climb”).

The need for moral and spiritual light in the world today is clear. Events around the globe argue that there’s more darkness, uncertainty, and chaos than light—from political division to struggling economies to autocratic force threatening democratic ideals. Yet, we can each commit to being a light in the world that shines and helps bring healing to these and other difficulties. Jesus encouraged this in his Sermon on the Mount when he said: “You are the light of the world. . . . Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:14, 16, New King James Version).

This illumination is the spirit of divine goodness and love—it is the identity of each one of us as God’s child, the reflection of God, of divine, infinite being. Jesus showed this to the world through his embodiment of the Christ, the spiritual illumination of God’s goodness. This Christ light comes to humanity moment by moment in the way it can best be discerned and received. This Christ is “God with us” (Matthew 1:23), which is the one real presence everywhere. Christian Science elucidates this infinite divine presence, and as we understand more of the allness of God, we gain more awareness in our daily lives of this spiritual view of existence.