The Dark Night of Democracy
A Meditation by Rev. Cameron Trimble
“We become stripped to the literal substance of ourselves before God.” — Howard Thurman
Last night, I had the privilege of hosting a conversation with Dr. Matthew Fox and Dr. Andrew Harvey on the experience of the dark night of the soul.1 Andrew began by saying that the “dark night”2 is not just a time of hardship—it is a complete and total death of the self as we have known it. It is the stripping away of illusion, of false securities, of all the ways we’ve performed or pretended. It leaves us naked and trembling, but also open—open to being reborn into something more authentic, more aligned with the divine.
I can’t help but think: We are living in a collective Dark Night in the western world.
The comforting myths of equality, liberty, and rule of law are being exposed—not as realities, but as aspirations we have never fully lived into. The institutions that were supposed to protect us are faltering. The leaders who should be guiding us are either complicit or absent. The systems we relied on to provide justice, care, and security are crumbling before our eyes.
This is terrifying. But it is also necessary.
Howard Thurman reminds us that the dark night strips us “to the literal substance of ourselves before God.” That is the only way transformation can happen. We cannot be reborn into something new if we are still clinging to illusions. We cannot build a more just and loving world if we refuse to let go of the old one.
So here we are. In the dark. Being stripped bare. Not knowing what comes next.
But maybe that is exactly where we need to be.
Maybe, instead of trying to grasp for what is falling away, we can trust that something deeper is at work. That beyond the death of what we once knew, there is a new birth waiting to happen. That even in this darkness, the Spirit is at work, preparing us for what we cannot yet see.
We are in this together,
Cameron
Reflection Questions
What illusions—personal or collective—are being stripped away in this season?
How can you sit with the discomfort of the unknown without rushing to fix or escape it?
What kind of world do you long to see birthed from this dark night?
A Prayer for the Day
A Prayer for the Dark Night
God of endings and beginnings,
We stand in the darkness,
Watching the world we once knew slip through our fingers.
We are afraid.
We are grieving.
We do not know what comes next.
But you are the God who meets us in the wilderness.
The God who strips away what is false
So that what is true can be revealed.
Hold us in this in-between space.
Give us the courage to let go of what no longer serves,
The patience to wait in the unknowing,
And the trust to believe that something new is being born.
Even in the dark, we will listen for your voice.
Even in the night, we will look for the dawn.
Amen.
Spiritual Practice
Sitting in the Darkness
The dark night of the soul is not something to be solved—it is something to be endured, trusted, and moved through. This week, find a moment to sit in quiet darkness. Turn off the lights, put away distractions, and simply be with the discomfort of uncertainty. Notice what arises. Notice the impulse to reach for answers, for control, for escape. Instead, practice surrender.
If you feel led, whisper a simple prayer: I trust that even in this darkness, light is here.
Let the stillness hold you. Let yourself rest in the unknown. And remember: The dawn always comes, even when we cannot yet see it.
Upcoming Events That Might Be of Interest…
TODAY! March 12, 2025, 12pm ET - I will be joining Rev. Dr. Kelly Brown Douglas, Canon Theologian at the Washington National Cathedral and Rev. Dr. Jim Antal, author of "Climate Church, Climate World," for a conversation titled “America in Search of a Soul.” The event is free. REGISTER HERE.
March 18 and 25, 2025, 7-8:30pm - Dr. Matthew Fox and I are hosting a Lenten series that we are calling “From Darkness to Dawn: Spiritual Courage and Political Action in the Age of MAGA.” Our first session was with modern mystic, Mirabai Starr. Andrew Harvey was our second guest. The amazing Bishop Yvette Flunder on March 18! Father Adam Bucko on March 25! REGISTER HERE! (recordings are available)
April 1, 2025, 12pm ET - Rev. Damien Lake and I are collaborating on hosting a cohort for new congregation developers that will meet monthly. Ecumenical. Interfaith. Free. Join us.
April 1, 2025 - Rabbi Benjamin Ross and I are collaborating on a new leadership program called “All Together Now: A Collaborative Cohort for Jewish Congregational Leadership Teams.” You can read about the program here.
July 20-25, 2025 - The Art of Wilding: A 5-Day Expedition in Wyoming for Women Leaders. Click here to learn more. Only one spot left!
August 11, 2025, 2pm ET - Dr. Andrew Root and I will be hosting a 6 part series on Spirituality in the Secular Age based on his research. The dates are August 11, 18, September 8, 15, and October 6, 13. Mark your calendars! More on this soon.
September 4, 4:30pm ET - I will be collaborating with the Anderson Forum for Progressive Theology to host a conversation with Thomas Jay Oord on Open and Relational theology. It’s a FREE event. Register here.
October 15-18, 2025 - Converging 2025: Sing Truth Conference (all musicians invited!) at Northwest Christian Church in Columbus, OH. Register here!
I drafted a Strategic Framework for Congregations as we move into the coming years of increased authoritarianism around the world. If interested, you can download it here.
https://convergencecolab.org/p/darkness-to-dawn
We are all indebted to Jim Finley and Mirabai Starr for these recordings exploring the teachings of St. John of the Cross who gave us the term “Dark Night of the Soul.”
I believe that largely because of the climate catastrophe, that one way way or another and in short order, collapse is upon us.
The Kin-dom of Heaven has been here forever. We are invited into that Kin-dom by Mother Earth, who is the very body of God to us. The Kin-dom of Heaven is loving relationship that is forever. We are not building the Kin-dom of God, nor can we save the earth, civilization, or ourselves. Nearly all that we “build” is dead, toxic material that cannot be metabolized by the biosphere on timescales relevant to life on planet earth. We kill the living, intimately intertwined wealth of our biosphere and turn it into dead toxic waste and we call that wealth.
Salvation comes through savoring our one-ness with earth and sky. We are not here to save or to be saved, but rather to savor. We are here to love. We each get a little time here to love and to be beloved. Jesus taught and modeled this for us. We belong and we are beloved. Life includes a great deal of pain and suffering. Only love makes suffering bearable. We are here to love: nothing less, nothing more, nothing else.