A Reflection for the Feast of St. John, Apostle and evangelist
Find today’s readings here.
“For the life was made visible;
We have seen it and testify to it…
what we have seen and heard
we proclaim now to you,
so that you too may have fellowship with us;
for our fellowship is with the Father
and with his Son, Jesus Christ.
We are writing this so that our joy may be complete.” (1 Jn 1:1-4)
Today’s first reading communicates very clearly what has become a defining truth in my life: Fellowship is what completes joy.
The Rev. Father Michael Himes, may he rest in peace, was a widely respected Catholic theologian and beloved faculty member at my alma mater, Boston College. Among many nuggets of his wisdom discussed in various classes, one notion in particular always stuck with me: The distinction between happiness and joy.
In a talk he gave to Boston College students back in 2015, Father Himes shared the following: “I make a distinction between joy, which is something internal that springs up from within us and happiness, which is contingent on a whole array of external circumstances.” He further explained that while happiness is fickle and can change in an instant, true joy lasts. In describing his time as a priest, he said, “There have been days I have not been happy, but there has not been a day that I would want to do anything else.”
Another one of my favorite interpretations of joy comes from the famous Jesuit priest and scientist Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, S.J., who once said, “Joy is the infallible sign of the presence of God.”
The words of both Father Himes and Teilhard de Chardin resonate with me deeply. I’ve reflected on them more as I find myself now firmly cemented in the “real world,” 18 months past my college graduation.
It is unrealistic to expect happiness every second of every day. Things go wrong. We all experience frustration, exhaustion and deflation. But the presence of joy can coexist with those transient feelings. Joy is deep. And it lasts.
Nothing reminds me of that fact more than the sense of companionship and support I feel from the people I love. In searching to “complete my joy,” as John writes, the answer has always lain in fellowship. The grace I receive from my closest friends, family members and loved ones is my earthly representation of the “fellowship with the Father and with his son, Jesus Christ” which John describes.
I am sure many of you are familiar with the following African proverb: “If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.”
These words will ring truer for me than they ever have before in about two weeks, as I attempt the greatest athletic feat of my life to date. Alongside two of my best friends, I will fly down to Orlando, Florida to tackle Disney World’s aptly-named “Dopey Challenge”—a four-day event in which runners are tasked with finishing a 5K race on Thursday, a 10K race on Friday, a Half Marathon on Saturday, and a Full Marathon on Sunday.
Believe it or not, when I think about what these four days have in store for me, my mind goes straight to joy.
I will not feel pure bliss throughout the entirety of these 48.6 miles. In fact, there will certainly be a great deal of pain. And without my two friends, I would not be able to complete said miles.
Somehow, in this intensity and craziness, joy abounds. Specifically, the joy that is different from happiness, and the joy that infallibly means God is near.
There is a tremendous sense of achievement in finishing any race. There is also plenty to be happy about in escaping from a cold, dark New York January to sunny Florida. And yet, it is my commitment to my friends that makes this event truly joyful for me.
I know I will find God in everything we will do together, from enduring intense leg cramps as we cross the finish line to the insanity of warming up for a ride on Space Mountain by eating Mickey Mouse waffles.
The intensity, the insanity and their fellowship complete my joy.
