Twice, our Rule calls us to joy. First, we are called to pray before our visits that the Holy Spirit will guide us and make us “channels for the peace and joy of Christ” [Rule, Part I, 1.7] Second, our Conference meetings are described as being “held in a spirit of fraternity, simplicity and Christian joy.” [Rule, Part I, 3.4] Joy, then, is at the very center of our vocation, in which we both share joy with the neighbor, and receive joy in our unity.

But what is joy? Is it happiness? If all I want is simple happiness, I can go to a ballgame, take a day off, sleep in one morning, or eat a piece of cake. There are many ways we can give ourselves this simple emotion, this fleeting moment of laughter. How could we be expected to bring happiness to the neighbor? Should we tell jokes, or invite them to a party?

Happiness is good, and certainly, God wants us to be happy. But happiness is something we can create for ourselves, and sometimes for others. Joy, though, is something deeper. Joy does not come from us, it is not created by us. Joy is one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit, a gift from God. We don’t pray for the power to create joy, we ask the Holy Spirit to share this fruit, through us, with the neighbor.

We, in turn, pray for the joy of the spirit ourselves, the joy our Savior promises will be complete if we remain in His love, keeping His commandments – especially the greatest one.

We may not exactly feel happy when the phone rings and we are called to go out and visit the neighbor; we may be missing that ball game on TV or getting up earlier on a Saturday morning than we had hoped. God’s work, after all, is work, not play. But by doing as He taught us; in loving Him through our service to His poor, we move ever closer to union with Him, and it is this union which is the source of joy. We can have joy even in our sadness.

By serving our neighbors, the image of the very God who created us, for love alone, we hope that through our caring, “the poor may catch a glimpse of God’s great love for them.” [Rule, Part I, 2.1] God’s love is a gift, and it is meant to remain a gift, given freely as soon as it is received. “Love,” Blessed Frédéric once explained, “gives itself without diminishing…shares itself without division…multiplies itself”. [107, to Curnier, 1835] Like the servants in the parable of the talents, we do not hide God’s love away for ourselves, but multiply it by giving it so that we may share the master’s joy.

Joy is union with Christ, who will be in our midst, as He promised, when we gather in His name in the home of the neighbor, united as brothers and sisters under the one God. This joy we receive, the joy we share, is not a fleeting feeling – it is eternal, for no one can take it away.

Contemplate

Does my service fill me with joy enough to share?

By Timothy Williams,
Senior Director of Formation & Leadership Development
Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA.