Where is the joy?

Posted on December 15, 2019 by Friar Musings

This weekend Deacon Bill Garret is preaching at all the Masses on behalf of the local Tampa Cristo Rey School. This is a reposting of a homily from Dec 2013.

It is Gaudete Sunday. The name comes from wording in Philippians 4:4 – Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice! While there is evident joy in the first readings and the Psalm, and a call for patience in the second reading, the gospel is not one that I would immediately connect with joy. It seems to me this is a Sunday whose very name asks us, “What gives you joy? What is the source of joy in your life?” A good question. Continue reading →

Of the same mind

Posted on August 16, 2019 by Friar Musings

Have you heard the phrase, “Don’t be a thermometer, be a thermostat”? A thermometer reads the temperature of the room and responds to it. A thermostat sets the temperature.

Are you setting the spiritual temperature of the room? Or do you find yourself constantly responding to how your kids are acting (and are you letting that determine the kind of parent you will be)? Are you basing the kind of spouse you are today on your husband or wife’s mood? Are you responsive to the virtue – or lack thereof – in your workplace, and letting that determine how you interact with the people around you? Continue reading →

Ash Wednesday – thoughts

Posted on March 9, 2019 by Friar Musings

Our gospel highlights the three spiritual practices of Lent: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. The readings all warn of not being gloomy about it all, not being ostentatious so that you’re sure to be noticed, and not to announce your generosity so that all might acknowledge your faithful giving. It calls into question not the tradition of the Lenten practices, but the meaning, intention, and purpose you assign to your practice. Continue reading →

Choosing Joy

Posted on December 16, 2018 by Friar Musings

I love the way the first reading from Zephaniah speaks about God: “He will rejoice over you with gladness…he will sing joyfully because of you.” (Zep 3:17-18). Because of you. Because of me. This divine joy is the very nature of God – creative; like an overflowing fountain – a fountain fullness. A joy that wants to be shared in wider and wider circles. A joy that asks us to join in the OT reading and the Psalm too – both telling us to shout for joy. The words of the second reading are the hallmark of Guadette Sunday: “Rejoice in the Lord always. I say again: rejoice.” From God to us, it is a call for a universal chorus of joy. Continue reading →

Finding Joy

Posted on November 30, 2017 by Friar Musings

I like words, their origin (or etymology if you prefer) and the ways in words affect people – and people affect words. Such as the word “peruse” which people understand to mean “glance over, skim,” etc. Yet originally the word means (and I would argue still does) to read completely and in exacting detail. Another interesting word whose meaning has done an about face is “egregious.” Today it means to be conspicuous or flagrant – and almost always in a negative sense. Yet the origin of the word from the Latin ex-“out of” and greg- “flock” to give us egregius “illustrious” or in a more modern sense, “outstanding.” Somewhere in the late 16^th century the word was increasingly used in an ironic sense, until that usage became it every day meaning. Continue reading →

What gives you Joy?

Posted on December 11, 2016 by Friar Musings

During the holiday season with winter storms roaring about, one can be quite happy that the airplane finally got off the ground; yesterday in Chicago, 1000 flights were cancelled. So if you got airborne, you were indeed happy. A new round of happiness came when the pilot finally found smooth air. And even if it was 6 hours late, you are happy that you have arrived. When you finally get off the plane, pass thru security, and at last see your spouse, your kids, your parents or grandparents, your fiancé, or whomever you have longed to see…. that is not happy. That is Joy. You hear it in the tone and energy of the voices, the embraces, and the hugs. And even when the reunion is right in the middle of everyone else’s way, when the reunion is clogging up the entire flow of foot traffic trying to get somewhere, you can’t help but notice even the most curmudgeon-y of travelers, however reluctantly, is giving evidence of a smile. Joy is embedded in the warp and woof, in the very fabric of relationships. Just like Mary and Elizabeth. Continue reading →

The Ringing of Bells

Posted on January 30, 2015 by Friar Musings

The Most Reverend Christopher Coyne was installed as the 10th Bishop of Burlington, Vermont on Thursday. Here is his homily:

There is an inscription that was found on a bell that hung in the tower of a church in Northern Wisconsin that read:

“To the bath and the table,
To the prayers and the Word,
I call every seeking soul.” Continue reading →

Desire and Joy

Posted on December 14, 2014 by Friar Musings

Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus. (1 Thess 5:16) It is the 3^rd Sunday of Advent, Guadette Sunday. Rejoice always, I say again, rejoice, for the Lord is near. With all apologies to Pharrell Williams and his Grammy award song, “Happy,” we not told to be happy, but are to “rejoice,” to be joyful. There’s a difference. Continue reading →

Perusing Joy: ten lepers

Posted on November 27, 2014 by Friar Musings

I like words, their origin (or etymology if you prefer) and the ways in words affect people – and people affect words. Such as the word “peruse” which people understand to mean “glance over, skim,” etc. Yet originally the word means (and I would argue still does) to read completely and in exacting detail. Recently Merriam-Webster’s (M-W) “Word of the Day” revealed another interesting word whose meaning has done an about face: egregious. Today it means to be conspicuous or flagrant – and almost always in a negative sense. Yet the origin of the word from the Latin ex-“out of” and greg- “flock” to give us egregius “illustrious” or in a more modern sense, “outstanding.” Somewhere in the late 16^th century the word was increasingly used in an ironic sense, until that usage became it every day meaning. Continue reading →

Where is the Joy?

Posted on December 15, 2013 by Friar Musings

It is Gaudete Sunday. The name comes from wording in Philippians 4:4 – Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice! While there is evident joy in the first readings and the Psalm, and a call for patience in the second reading, the gospel is not one that I would immediately connect with joy. It seems to me this is a Sunday whose very name asks us, “What gives you joy? What is the source of joy in your life?” A good question. Continue reading →

friarmusings

the musings of a Franciscan friar…

Tag Archives: Joy