And welcome to the light half of the year! If you’ve never watched the sunrise at Newgrange in Ireland, you should. They’ve been live streaming it the last couple of years, and it’s amazing. I still can’t wrap my mind around how the ancient people constructed this.
You can see photos and learn more at this web site. While December 21 is the date of the winter solstice, it’s celebrated for a few days running at Newgrange in Ireland.
When Tom and I visited Newgrange, we were led into the inner chamber. The lights were switched off and a beam of light was cast from the front into the chamber to simulate what the morning of the winter solstice would look like. It’s such a wonder that ancient people built that structure and that we can see what they saw. At sunrise on the winter solstice, a specially designed roof box above the entry captures the ray of light and sends the beam all the way through the chamber to the rear. You are not allow to take photographs inside the chamber. Below are some outside images we took on our visit.
Carvings just like these are inside the chamber. There are some more modern carvings as well from before the time when the site was protected. But the ancient ones are very evident and amazing.
What’s incredible to think about is how old this structure is. It was built about 3200 BC, making it older than the pyramids in Egypt. It lies in what was, and is to this day, a fertile farmland in the Boyne valley. What the chamber was (and there are several others in this valley as well) is up for speculation. It’s called a passage grave, but it could have been used for worship activities and perhaps burial for only a few special people.
In normal years there has been a lottery to decide who can enter during the solstice. But from watching the livestream, I’d guess that’s nearly as good as being there.
Remember to acknowledge the passing of the dark half of the year as you look forward to what the light half may bring.
When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
John 8:12 NIV
