Shortly after I converted to Catholicism, I found myself hopelessly overwhelmed. I had three children under age three, a seemingly endless to-do list, and regularly felt like I was on the brink of a nervous breakdown. I’d begun to deal with my stress by spending too much time on the internet, and my prayer life had become almost nonexistent. As Lent approached that year, I spent a lot of time searching for how I could make it a time of reprioritization and renewal. I wanted to undertake a spiritual practice that would be drastic enough to break me out of my rut, but would also be reasonable for someone with my crazy lifestyle to undertake. And then, during one of my (all-too-rare) prayer times, I got an odd inspiration:
Turn out the lights.
I felt drawn to do occasional fasts from artificial light during Lent. After talking to my husband about it, we committed to foregoing all electric sources of light after sundown approximately once a week—and this included not only overhead lights, but glowing screens like computers or televisions as well. For safety’s sake we did leave nightlights on in the hallways while we slept, but in terms of illuminating our evening activities, it was all candlelight. The impact it had on our lives was more powerful than I could have imagined. To list just a few of the profound changes this simple once-a-week fast brought to our lives:
1. It forced us to limit our to-do lists. My 98-year-old grandfather often comments that life is much more hectic now than it was when he was growing up on a remote farm in the 1920s, and I think that electric light has a lot to do with that. The first thing I noticed during our artificial light fast was what a large amount of work I typically tried to accomplish after sundown. I found it impossible to tackle laundry by candlelight, and obviously any work on the computer was out. At first it was exasperating, but then I realized that I had been using artificial light to push myself way beyond reasonable human limits in terms of how much I tried to do in a day. On the days that I was forced to do only as much work as I could do during daylight hours, my life became naturally balanced, with times of rest complementing times of work.
2. It taught us humility. The first night I found myself facing an entire evening with no light, I was just about twitching with anxiety. But what about all that laundry? What about those dishes I didn’t get to? What about email?!?! I hadn’t realized how much I relied on myself and how little I relied on God until I was forced to give up control of my schedule. It was humbling to see that the universe actually did not fall apart at the seams without me working 16 hours a day, even when I didn’t get to those items on my to-do list that were “so important.”
3. It inspired us to live intentionally. On the days when I’d have artificial light to extend my work time as late as I wanted to, I tended to shuffle around the house aimlessly, getting to things when I got to them. But when I knew that my work would have to cease at sundown, with whatever didn’t get done being set aside until the next day, I approached my days much more purposefully.
4. It reduced our stress levels. At the time I was burdened by a lot of worries about everything from money to how I would get through the next day without collapsing from exhaustion. Yet every time we switched off the lights and lit the candles, an amazing thing would happen: My stress would be instantly cut in half. Something about the dim, natural glow and the movement of the flames made me feel deeply relaxed, even when I had been full of tension just moments earlier.
5. It carved out time for the things that matter. The two areas of life that were always threatened by our frantic schedules were prayer time and family time. Without being able to do much work or become distracted by glowing screens, we found that our candle-lit evenings left us plenty of time for our real priorities.
6. It helped break attachments to internet and television. Being forced to spend the occasional evening without the online world or TV gave us some much-needed time to re-evaluate the role that both of those things played in our lives. It made us see where we were over-using them, and forced us to develop new habits for entertainment and relaxation.
7. It improved our health. Studies have shown that our bodies depend on light cues to produce hormones that impact our entire systems, and when we throw them off with too much artificial light in the evening, it can contribute to everything from breast cancer growth to obesity. Though we probably didn’t go without light long enough to have a long-term impact on our health, we did see great short-term benefits. Nighttime snacking was almost entirely cut out, since, oddly, chips and dip by candlelight just didn’t have the same effect. We went to bed earlier, and found that it was easier to fall into deep sleep when we hadn’t been staring at glowing screens right before bed.
8. It made us viscerally aware of our need for God’s providence. Darkness can be scary when you can’t control it. I have rarely felt more powerless than when I would watch the last rays of sun disappear from the sky, knowing that I would be left in darkness that I could not banish at will. A reviewer of the book At Day’s Close: Night in Times Past wrote:
The English called nightfall “shutting-in,” which literally meant the shutting-in of daylight but came to mean “the need for households to bolt portals against the advancing darkness.” All “doors, shutters, and windows were closed tight and latched,” and “seldom was God’s protection more valued than at night.” The fervor with which people prayed was deep and real: They feared violence, fire, death, even the possibility that the next day the sun itself would fail to rise. [emphasis mine]
Electric light gives us the illusion of having control over our lives, and I found going without it to be a stunning reminder of our littleness and powerlessness in the grand scheme of things.
Doing candlelight-only evenings isn’t easy, even when it’s only once a week; most of us have lifestyles that revolve around the availability of artificial light. But if you’re looking for something to add to your Lenten practices that will shake things up and help you see your whole life from a fresh perspective, I highly recommend turning out the lights.
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Wow, I see on facebook you’ve already offended someone with seasonal affective disorder. Well, I would hope that most readers would know that this was not meant as a cure-all for every single person for Lent, but a suggestion. There are people who struggle with “what to give up” year after year and it is merely a suggestion. Certainly I would hope someone with SAD would read this and realize it was not intended toward them the same way a person with a health condition like diabetes might not fast.
We shut off the cable over a month ago for many reasons but since going through the anxiety of not having tv we are seeing a positive effect. We are reading more and esp. with the kids at night. With that in mind I was praying this morning of what to give up for lent and one thing I had decided was to limit my computer time…but once I read your article I plan on asking God about the lightless evenings as well. The other day I prayed for God to let me learn to live on less. I can see that many distractions may come from having too many activities to do esp. in the evening. Thanks for the inspiration!!!
Your post has showed me, perhaps, one of the reasons the Amish shun artificial light. It keeps them focused on the events of the day. I can see how artificial light, while a positive force, has negative affects on human development. It has made our lives more hectic. We don’t allow ourselves enough time to detach from our activity lists.
Great information.
P.S. - Your blog conversiondiary.com inspired me to write my own faith journey blog - immersiondiary.com
Thank you!
This wouldn’t work for me because it’s still dark out when I leave for work and if I make dinner as soon as I get home, it is dark when we eat. That would mean hectic weekends getting a week’s worth of housework done. However, I can appreciate it. A few years ago we had a week-long power outage and I relished the time we had for prayer and conversation.
Great idea! My husband and I have decided to give up television all together this Lent. Maybe a little bit each day for the kids, but none for us at night. That means more reading (yeah!) and quiet time. I think computers need to be included in our fast too. Thanks!
#3 really rings true for me - not relating to light, but to having a hard stop in my day. Three weeks ago I started going to sleep at 9:30/10:00 (instead of midnight or 1:00, my much preferred bedtime) and it’s been fascinating to see how that affects what I spend my time on during the day. Knowing that I don’t have those extra 3 hours later on really changes what I do earlier, and how much I can reasonably expect of myself.
10 years ago, before I was married (or Catholic), my roommate worked nights so I had the place to myself every single day. I would turn off every light, all the screens, and unplug everything in the house except the refrigerator (lots of electronic devices emit a high-pitched whine, even when “off”). I would light 2 candles and operate by them for the entire evening.
I can attest to the calmness and clarity it can bring to your life. While I didn’t actively pray so much as meditate (again, this was before I became Catholic), the time spent in quiet reflection was enormously valuable. This inspires me to try some version of that again; although it may be hard to get my wife and 2 year-old on board!
This is a great idea! This will definitely be part of our family’s Lenten practices this year. Thanks for the timely sharing.
6 years without TV service has been great. the kids (13 and 16) don’t miss it either. We do watch movies from time to time and watch on average 1 or 2 TV episodes a week via the Net, but it is a far cry from when the TV was on half the day, even if nobody was watching.
For our family - and others it seems - the lights might not work but the ‘intention’ of Jennifer’s post of course, is to disrupt your daily life and be, as she says - more intentional in our lives.
How about talking w/ your family about turning off the TV, the computers? This would be especially true if those TV’s and computers are in very single room of the house!! Drawing together for more family time w/ some prayer time thrown in is always a good idea and Lent is a great time to examine how much our families actually have.
An interesting counterpoint to your suggestion is Hemingway’s nihilistic short story “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place.” Full disclosure: it’s dreadful and literally anti-Christian, but the anti-Christianity on display in the story revolves around an “electric light.” Just food for thought.
She only said one night a week, not 7 days a week!
That is like saying we are going vegetarian twice a week.
A small sacrifice of meatless dinners which are a cinch to make. I
consider it a break for me. I don’t have to try to think about
what to make a small salad a bit of tuna fish and jello for dessert
(yes I get the no calorie one,okay?:)
I got 2 great Father Barron DVDs “Catholicism” and “7 Deadly Sins 7 Lively Virtues”, Dante’s Divine Comedy, and a GK Chesterton book as an alternative, at least daily Mass twice a week, daily rosary and 30 minutes of exercise a day except Sundays my day of rest.
I love Lent it gives an excuse to do all sorts of off the wall religious stuff and the family just says okay!
This is a dumb question, but do you read and play games by candlelight? If we could do nothing, we’d have a mutiny of sorts on our hands. :)
I don’t much TV anyway, but I do have a bad habit of spending the early morning on the net (I am a very early riser). This Lent I plan to pray and do spiritual reading during that time.
Gretchen, yes, do those things. Sew or craft or read or sing or play games. Don’t strain anybody’s eyes, but with the proper illumination, and not spending too much time, all those things are possible, and somehow they loom up out of the quiet without the TV and stereo and seem more special, somehow.
I’ve done this in the past and I appreciate the reminder to do it again.
What a good suggestion for Lent. I’m going to try this fast this year. Thank you and God Bless for sharing this idea.
What a neat idea! Thanks for sharing that, I hope it catches on…
I never would have thought of this, but I’m very inspired to do it. Thanks for sharing this idea.
Before reading this article, I had drawn up our list of ways to observe Lent. Our house is pretty quiet with only two adults, but nighttime is noisiest with the network news and some loud, flashy series on tv. I had decided to forego one night of tv already, but turning off the lights in addition will have an added dimension. I’d love to see a follow up article after Lent telling how the author and commenters here faired. I love Lent.
My goodness, what a great idea. Thank you.
Fantastic idea. I’m just going without Christmas lights in my dorm for Lent.
A number of years ago our TV broke the day before I left on a 3-week business trip. Told my wife that the family would have to wait until I return to get it fix.
When I returned my wife told me not to fix or replace it. The kids were less distracted and the house was quieter—TV was often filling in the background with noise.
We watch movies on DVD and the internet, but that time is really limited. Have to say after 7-8 years, we do not miss the TV.
Hi
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Thank you
The relationship of light to life and love is all encompassing. During Lent we see a lengthening of days (light) leading to spring, hence the English word lent, a verb meaning spring to life. The Most Holy Trinity is the only source of this springing to true light, true life and true love.
Turning off artificial light is an awesome idea. We will closet the TV (based on artificial cathode ray R-G-B light) this lent and pray a candlelit rosary until Easter.
Thanks for the reminder.
For any reader who does not see the battle between true, Light, Life and Love and the imposters, please go to GOOGLE and search for Light, Life, Love. Pay attention to the added 4th L, the word Liberty…“do thou as thou wilt.” It perverts the other three.
The New Agers, esoteric counterfeits are constantly assaulting these three words (faux light, lifestyles, lust) and are entrapping Christians with lying words.
We must bind these three words together as a Triple Cord, a triple cord that cannot be broken. (Ecclesiates 4:12 “And if a man prevail against one, two shall withstand him: a threefold cord is not easily broken.”)
For more information please visit my blog at http://eucharist-emc2.blogspot.com
God bless you!
Wow! It’s amazing how God will lead us to read or hear something just when we need it. I have been trying to come up with some specific ideas for Lenten practices and you nailed it for me. Like many others, I’m sure, I have “more prayer time” at the top of my list. Your suggestion of a “lights fast” is just what i need to help me. I can especially relate to #3. Now that the kids are grown and my time is essentially my own, I can see that i am not intentional enough about how I spend my day. Your suggestion will help me accomplish 2 of my goals…pray more and get more sleep! Thanks and God Bless!!
Oh my…this is a beautiful article. I am willing to try one evening of fasting artificial light of the good it can bring to my life! Thank you!!! ~~Jeanette
Thanks for this great article. So many things you touched on hit home with me! Thanks again!
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