I think the psychological infirmity that this diminishment of light brings on in some people is called seasonal dysthimia and it is a really debilitating form of winter depression. We need hope, the antidote to depression.
Hurrah for the Church which celebrates Epiphany today! This day commemorates the journey of the magi who followed the star-light to the place where the child was in Bethlehem. We need light in our darkness and the message of the magi is that we should watch and keep alert. Following stars are quests as old as Don Quixote and as new as the astronaut who signed my photo of him and then wrote “Reach for the stars!” next to his signature.
I think the message of Jesus is confirmed by this feast. Jesus is the light of the world, shining from within the sinfulness of our world. The revelation which is epiphany exposes the futility of violence, the saddness of ignorance, and the corruption that sin brings to our world. But it doesn’t only expose these things for what they are. Our Lord, himself, brings the strength and surety of His grace-filled presence to enlighten our exhausted world.
“He Fathers-forth whose beauty is beyond change: Praise Him.” (Gerard Manley Hopkins)