This past Thursday, July 1, we officially transitioned to Family of Parishes, joining with St. Therese of Lisieux and St. Maximilian Kolbe/St. Francis of Assisi parishes. One of the purposes for this transition is to help us all work together to be joyful missionary disciples. This week’s connecting point stresses the “joyful” part, encouraging us to find ways to be more joyful.
The main characteristic of the early Christians was their great joy at knowing Christ and belonging to his group of followers. There are many stories of martyrs rejoicing and praising God as they were carted off to their execution. Jesus gave them great joy even in the face of life’s great trials. It was their great joy that drew others to the Christian way of life.
I recently heard a mother share a story about her three year old son. She was waking him up on Sunday morning to go to church. He insisted that he did not want to go to church. When his mother asked “why?” he responded: “Because no one is happy there!” Could this happen at St. Isidore the Farmer’s parish?
When presiding at Mass and preaching, I try to focus on those in the assembly who seem to be happy and joy-filled. There are always a few. I wish there were more.
There is a close connection between gratitude and joy. Grateful people are happy people. They are well aware of how blessed they are; that everything is a gift from God. The word “Eucharist” means “thanksgiving.” On Sunday we gather as a community full of joy to give thanks to God for the gift of God’s Son and the many other gifts we receive each day. Our gratitude is expressed in our joy. If we do not take time each day to reflect on our blessings, we are not even aware of all we have to be grateful for when we gather for the Eucharist. Perhaps one way to grow in joy is to take time every day to acknowledge our blessings.
I also take joy in knowing how much our parish community does to reach out to those in need, and the great good the Catholic Church, in spite of its faults, does throughout the world.
So what can you do to be more joyful? It is especially important for our young people to see our joy. They may be more prone to join us in church if every one there was happy.
