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SCRIPTURE
READINGS
|
II Chronicles |
36:14-16,
19-23 |
| Psalm |
136 |
| Ephesians
|
2:4-10 |
| John |
3:14-21 |
Today
the Church takes off Lenten purple and puts on cheerful
rose. We are near to Easter, to the source of our
Christian happiness and joy.
What
is happiness? The brilliant but perpetually miserable
pianist Oscar Levant once said, "Happiness
is not something we experience; it's something we
remember." And it's true that trying to answer
the question "Am I happy right now?" is
like pulling a plant up by the roots to see if it
is growing. C S Lewis in his autobiography describes
youthful experiences of a mystical joy breaking
in from another world - a world yet to be discovered
but somehow familiar and home-like.
On
the eve of his death, Jesus spoke to his disciples
of joy: "I have told you all this so that my
joy may be in you and your joy may be complete"
(Jn 16.11). Present joy is an eschatological gift;
it derives from a victory yet to come. In the beatitudes,
Christ announces a future happiness which is also
present in present woe: "Happy are you who
are hungry now; you shall be filled. Happy are you
who weep now; you shall laugh." (Lk 6.20).
Is happiness then essentially a future state - something
always to be hoped for? Certainly the only perfect
happiness promised to us must wait until we are
in the full presence of God.
This
is what we mean by "heaven" or the "beatific
vision", and this cannot come
without death. Until then, we can only "rejoice,
be glad and be happy" in the imperfect accommodations
of life.
Sometimes
a little shock therapy may be needed to help us
appreciate our present happiness. Here is a traditional
Jewish story: Mrs Bloom was desperate. She lived
with her ten children and her unemployed husband
and his two sisters all in one room. On the verge
of a nervous breakdown, she went to her rabbi for
help. "Rabbi, it's impossible! The noise! The
constant fighting! We're living on top of each other!
What can 1 do?" "Get some chickens,"
the rabbi said. "Chickens?" "Chickens!
Five of them." She did as she was told and
she came back a week later: "Rabbi, it's worse
than ever! The chickens are all over the room, we
can't eat or sleep - it's impossible! What should
I do?" "Get some goats. " Goats?
" "Goats! Two of them!" She
did as she was told and she came back a week later:
"Rabbi, I'm not holy enough for this! The noise!
The confusion! The smell! It's a living nightmare!
What should I do?" "Get rid of the chickens."
"Get rid of the chickens?" "And the
goats," the rabbi added. She did as she was
told and a week later she came back: "Rabbi!
Such a saint you are! Such as wise man! The peace!
The quiet! The space! We never had it so good!
"
William
Pearsall SJ
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