the Divine Heart of Darkness: Finding God in Shadows

There is a universal assumption that associates darkness with fear and evil. Why is it that light has come to be exalted, venerated—worshipped even—whilst darkness has become demonised and feared? As a devoted lover of the dark, Catherine Bird seeks to ask how we can use the experience of darkness to lift our spirits, challenge our hearts and minds, and draw us closer into the heart of God. Drawing on material not only from Biblical and religious studies, but also from anthropology, biology, sociology and the creative arts, The Divine Heart of Darkness offers a new way of understanding darkness and invites you to enter a new realm in which light and darkness co-exist and complement each other, both with beautiful and life-affirming qualities, and both with challenging and negative qualities—not reflecting a dichotomy of good and evil, but rather a balanced universe in which God’s nature is revealed in all things which are healing and affirming of life.

How can we use the experience of darkness to lift our spirits, challenge our hearts and minds and draw us closer into the heart of God?