Fr. Ron Rolheiser reminds us that there was a time before there was light. The universe was dark before God created light. However, eventually, the world grew dark again. When? We are told in the Gospels that as Jesus was dying on the cross, between the sixth and ninth hour, it grew dark, and Jesus cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me!” There’s a darkness that besets us whenever the forces of love seem overpowered by the forces of hatred. The light extinguished then is the light of hope, but there is deeper darkness, and this is the kind of darkness that the Gospels say formed a cloud over the world as Jesus hung dying. The renowned biblical scholar Fr. Raymond E. Brown tells us that the darkness that beset the world as Jesus hung dying would last until we believe in the resurrection. Until we believe that God has a life-giving response for all death and that God will roll back the stone from any grave, no matter how deeply goodness is buried under hatred and violence, the darkness of Good Friday will continue to darken our planet. Mohandas K. Gandhi said that we can see the truth of God always creating new light simply by looking at history. Throughout history, the way of truth and love has always won. There have been murderers and tyrants, and they can seem invincible for a time. But in the end, they always fall. Love conquered all, even death.