ODE TO JOY, CYCLE C

On the night before he died, Jesus astonished his disciples by saying,”I have spoken these things to you that my joy may be in you and your joy may be full.” St. Paul’s letters are full of joy. St. James wrote that we should consider it all joy when we encounter various trials. St. Peter spoke about the “indescribable and glorious joy” that comes from knowing and loving Jesus, and St. John states that one of the purposes behind his writing was that our joy might be complete. The Gospel is a message of joy that is meant to be shared. Joy is contagious, but to communicate it homilists must first accept the gift and cultivate it within themselves. One needn’t be a standup comic to have a sense of humor. Extracting the humor from our own mistakes, idiosyncrasies, and faults builds the foundation for a healthy outlook toward ourselves and the world around us. Once we learn to take ourselves less seriously, chances are we will become more able to communicate God’s joy to others. Joy, therefore, pervades this volume of homily reflections—joy and a sense of humor. As Blessed Julian of Norwich wrote: “The greatest honor one can give to Almighty God is to live gladly, joyfully, because of the knowledge of His love.”

About the Author: Harold A. Buetow, PhD, JD is a priest from the Diocese of Brooklyn who spent thirty years at Catholic University where he taught and was Senior Staff Editor on The New Catholic Encyclopedia. This present title is the second of a trilogy of reflections on the Readings of the Liturgical Year. The other volumes are: God Still Speaks: Listen! (Cycle A) and All Things Made New (Cycle B). Fr. Buetow has also written Thirst for Life, The New Out of the Old, Rejoicing in Hope, and Pastoral Talks for Special Occasions.