
“Lead, kindly light, amid the encircling gloom, lead thou me on!” These poetic words by John Henry Newman, an English clergyman, begin a hymn that is much loved in many parts of the Christian community worldwide. The linking of the light that is Christ with the descriptive word kindly, which is related to the attribute of kindness, is appropriate to the Epiphany season. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus calls His hearers to be lights in the world. Letting our light shine with kindness is evidence of the fruit of the Spirit growing in, through, and among us.