Current Language:

Jesus Christ is the light | of the world ….the light no darkness can | overcome.

Alternatives:

Jesus Christ you bring light | to the world…the light that meets darkness | in the night.

Current Language:

Thanksgiving for Light:

The Lord be with you. And also with you.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. It is right to give our thanks and praise.

We give you thanks, O God,

for in the beginning you called light into being,

and you set light in the sky

to govern night and day.

In a pillar of cloud by day

and a pillar of fire by night

you led your people into freedom.

Enlighten our darkness by the light of your Christ:

may your Word be a lamp to our feet

and a light to our path;

for you are merciful,

and you love your whole creation,

and with all your creatures we give you glory,

through your Son Jesus Christ,

in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

now and forever.

Amen.

Alternatives:

In place of the “Thanksgiving for Light,” add a Thanksgiving for Darkness:”

The Lord be with you. And also with you.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. It is right to give our thanks and praise.

We give you thanks, O God,

for in the beginning you dwelt in darkness.

Before all was formed,

and before all was named,

You were present in the vastness that became Creation.

Before Creation was, You were,

and the darkness birthed it all.

Together with all creatures

who call the darkness their home,

we give you thanks

for the life that thrives in night. Amen.

Current Language:

Let your light so shine before others that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Alternatives:

Let your life and actions remind others of God’s goodness, bringing Glory to God, and peace to your neighbor.

Current Language:

Merciful God, creator and giver of life, you have called all people from darkness into light, from error into truth, from death into life. Grant grace to name/s and bless them. Raise them by your Spirit. Revive them by your word. Form them by your hand. Bring them to the water of life and to the bread and cup of blessing, that with all your people they may bear witness to your grace and praise you forever through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Alternatives:

Merciful God, creator and giver of life, you have always been with your people by night and by day, in wilderness and Promised Land, in the gift of new life, and through the end of life. Grant grace to name/s and bless them. Raise them by your Spirit. Revive them by your word. Form them by your hand. Bring them to the water of life and to the bread and cup of blessing, that with all your people they may bear witness to your grace and praise you forever through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

...You may counter this harmful language in these ways:

1. Simply present darkness as the good, sacred framework, and light as the one to be endured.*

(Psalm 121 can be helpful with this: “The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.”)

*Notice, this does not do away with the harmful binary, but rather upends it. Caution should be taken with this approach, as it still casts one side as better than the other.

2. Dismantle the binary altogether, and leave it unclear which reference is the favorable one.

Instead of dark = bad and light = good, it can be said that light exists and dark exists, and God dwells in them both. The Creation story in Genesis displays this well, since God was in the Dark when it all began. The Good News is still conveyed, and no racial prejudice is perpetuated.