What does Per Crucem ad Lucem mean?

I have a cross necklace that is formed with the Latin phrase  PER CRUCEM AD LUCEM.

The English translation of “PER CRUCEM AD LUCEM” is: “Through the Cross to the Light” 

The words remind us that Jesus is the Light of the World. He came into a dark world, and through His death, we find light and life. 

Genesis 1 — From Darkness to Light

There was only darkness when God created the earth:

Gen 1:1-2  In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

But then God spoke and commanded Light to appear.

Gen 1:3  Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.

Note that the Light was not the light of the sun, for the sun was not created until the fourth day (Gen 1:16).  

Throughout the centuries, many have attempted to explain the light source spoken of in Gen 1:3. Was it a bright mist? Or a pillar of fire formed by God on the fourth day into the sun, moon, and stars? Could it have been the essence of the sun but without its form? Or maybe it was angels? All of those hypotheses have problems.  

Another Answer

The words in the original language tell that God made the light manifest — that He made it appear, and then it was visible. Therefore, many believe that the light was the Light of God Himself. The Bible even supports this. Psalm 104 says that God is clothed in light (Ps 104:2), and John declared God IS light in his first epistle!

1 John 1:5  This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.

Light in the Darkness

When Adam sinned, the world was plunged into darkness—a separation from God. And there is a day coming that will be filled with darkness:  

Amos 5:20 Is not the day of the LORD darkness, and not light? Is it not very dark, with no brightness in it?

But God provides deliverance from darkness: 

Psalm 112:4 Unto the upright there arises light in the darkness; He is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous. 
Psa 97:11  Light is sown for the righteous, And gladness for the upright in heart.
1 John 1:5  This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.

Per Crucem ad Lucem 

In all that we do, we should lift our eyes to Jesus. He is “the brightness of [God’s] glory, the express image of His person” (Heb 1:3) and “the true light that gives light” (John 1:9)

However, the True Light of God, that is radiated through Jesus, is not available to all mankind.  The unregenerate “grope in the darkness without light” (Job 12:25).  Their path is not lit with the Light that guides and directs. They do not see with their eyes the Light that shone from the beginning.

Under the New Covenant, there is no light (lucem) except through the cross (crucem).

• It was through the cross that Jesus paid for sin, conquered death, and defeated Satan. 
• It was through the cross that the way to the Father was opened. 
• It was through the cross that Jesus received the crown.
• And it is through the cross that we have Light in this life and glorious Light to come.

The cross was not a tragedy. It was a triumph. It was only through the agony of the cross that Jesus was glorified.  And it is only through the cross that we are able to come to the Light, find joy in this life, and look forward to unspeakable joy in the next. 

The Light that lights our paths.  

• King David proclaimed, “Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart.” (Ps 97:11)
• John the Baptist testified of Jesus, “the true Light, which lights every man that comes into the world.” (John 1:9)
• Jesus declared, “I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” (John 8:12)

Keep looking to the Author and Finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2) and remember the promise of glory, the joy set before us.

Psa 141:8 ..mine eyes are unto thee, O GOD the Lord: in thee is my trust…
Titus 2:13  Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

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