In 1:5 of The King James Bible, verse 6 says: “And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day”. The first day was marked by the passing of two separate entities: light marked day, dark signified night.
100 years ago when you went out at night, it was dark! Gradually nighttime has become lighter, so much so that today when you go out at night it is extremely light.
Artificial light, allows for the the western world to operate 24/7 so that factories, medical centers, businesses, restaurants and clubs are active throughout the night with no hindrance of darkness to prevent them.
This is progress, right? Or is it actually a phenomenon that is causing grave health issues globally and the extinction of the natural, God given gift to humanity – the absence of light?
Genesis 1:5: Light was Good
In 1:5 of The King James Bible, verse 4 says: “And God saw the light, that it was good”. In order to know that is was “good” we infer that the light had advantages over the darkness.
We believe that in order to know something is “good” we need to experience the opposite. That is to know we love, we experience hate; to appreciate wealth we know poverty; to know good we experience bad and thus to know light, we first must know darkness.
But, this dichotomy does not really exist. Goodness is the whole, so evil is the absence of good. Hate exists when love is distinguished. Light is the whole being and therefore darkness is the absence of light.
Genesis 1:5 – The Darkness, He Called Night
So, in today’s world, as shown on NASA photos from space, our nighttimes have been changed due to an absence of darkness. This began with the invention of the light bulb, the wide use of electricity and ever-since the First World War we have lost our ability to see real darkness.
As a result, we can no longer witness events, such as the “nocturnal sun“, see the milky way or even count more than 4 or 5 stars each night.
“Only In The Darkness Can We See The Stars”
The quote from Martin Luther King Jr, may be an analogy for the human condition of only seeing the light in times of suffering and not appreciating the stars when in times of prosperity, health and wealth.
But, the quote is also completely literal in that we can no longer see the stars, as we no longer have darkness. Only when we seek out and make a conscious effort to find true darkness, such as in the desert or in remote rural areas, do we have the capacity to see the stars, the milky way and all the wonders of the night sky.
Genesis 1:5 – Before Night There Was Evening
God named the light day. What are the effects of increasing day and losing night?
The increase in artificial light causes an acute suppression of the hormone melatonin, responsible for our sleep cycles.
In addition, light acts as a stimulant, keeping us awake for longer into the night as well as preventing our minds to relax.
Together, these cause the development of circadian rhythm sleep-wake disorders (CRSWD) which alters the sleep patterns of humans.
Artificial light from televisions, smartphones and computers, used until late into the night when the timing of our circadian clock is paramount to our sleep, all contribute to delaying sleep onset.
The lack of sleep clearly affects our emotional and mental well being. Lack of sleep has been proven time and time again, scientifically, to increase depression, anxiety, anger, bipolar disorder and ADHD.
Living as Ascribed in Genesis 1:5
The extinction of darkness is having profound negative effects on society and the health of our children. We are living in light – the light of exhaustion, depression and ADHD.
Is it possible to try to find a balance where we recognize the importance of evening and nighttimes as God created gifts to the sanity of humanity? It is a fascinating read about the difficult efforts Linda Geddes made in order to live for weeks without artificial nighttime light and the positive affects it had on her life.
The Eco Bible on Genesis 1:5
Genesis 1:5 describes God’s creation of the Universe. We read how “in the beginning God created the heavens and the Earth” and how “the spirit of God hovered over the face of the water.” We read how God creates light through the utterance “let there be light,” and “separates the light from the darkness.”
Now let’s dive into Genesis 1:5, though the lens of the bestselling book, Eco Bible.
Extinction Events
Genesis 1:5 – God Called the Light Day, and the Darkness He Called Night. And There Was Evening and There Was Morning, the First Day.
The Midrash asks why this verse reads “And there was evening” rather than just “There was evening” – implying that there was something else before. The Midrash answers, “ . . . time existed before this . . . God created and destroyed worlds until this one . . . when it says, ‘God saw everything He had made and behold it was very good,’(Genesis 1:31) that teaches us that the previous ones were not.” (Midrash Genesis Rabbah 3:7) This explanation suggests that cataclysmic extinction events once occurred, and that sustained existence on this planet is not guaranteed. Scientists understand that five extinction events occurred in the last 500 million years, and humans are causing a sixth one at the current time (Greshko). The previous extinction events were caused by “acts of God,” like comets and massive volcanic eruptions. But the current one is caused by people on a creation that God declared “very good.”
* Featured image source
