Moon Parable: a Foreword The moon has her phases, lovely in every turn. The sun has his daily journey from east to west. When the moon ventures palely into the day during her appointed rounds and should happen to interpose between sun and Earth, her light returns to the sun, from whence it came, and is hidden from Earth: at which time her true, natural state is revealed, which is darkness. The sun's eclipse brings the moon no shame, however; for the solar light breaks forth on all sides of the moon and does not allow the day to be turned, completely, into dark of night. By this means does the moon inform us of aspects of the sun's splendor that we should not, otherwise, know. Is the moon, whose natural state is revealed to be darkness, therefore a servant of darkness? Indeed not; for she participates in and partakes of the glory of the sun, whose light she drinks during all of her circuits, phases, and revolutions. This, then, is her proper glory: that she, who is established from the beginning as a ruler of night, relieves her domain of great darkness by power of the ruler of day. When the moon's light falters in the night by the timid turnings of her countenance, or should it fail completely by having fallen under the dark shadow of Earth, then the stars of heaven assume greater brilliance, in testimony of the sure mercies of the Creator. Only when vapors of clouds stand between Earth and the greater vault of heaven are men convinced of a fear of darkness. However, as the clouds of the second heaven-- much like thoughts carried upon the inward heaven of Mind-- are recognized by all to be but transient things, this darkness, too, is revealed as a manifestation of mercy; for in every darkness, the light in man perceives any greater darkness and anticipates the return of greater light.

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