My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ Our only True Lord, God and Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.
“I AM EXCEEDINGLY JOYFUL IN ALL OUR TRIBULATION”
[2 Corinthians 7:4]
The Holy Apostle Paul reminds the faithful that our God “comforts the downcast” [2 Cor. 7:6]. Our Holy Orthodox Church teaches that true joy in Christ is a spiritual gift that is not dependent on circumstances, unlike fleeting worldly happiness. This “bright” sadness or “joyful sorrow” comes through embracing suffering and tribulation, as it helps us to develop endurance and character by aligning us with our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ’s suffering, ultimately leading to a deeper, permanent joy in God the Holy Spirit. The fruit of the Holy Spirit are: agape, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Galatians 5:22). Therefore, the Source of true joy is found in the person of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, a joy that cannot be taken away.
Orthodox Christianity also teaches the concept of “bright sadness” (Gk. Charmolype), a paradoxical state of “joyful mourning” where suffering is combined with Divine consolation and agape. A good example is the Cross of our Lord Christ, which brought sorrow, is also the very source of this joy, showing that suffering can lead to rejoicing. We are taught that we are called to embrace suffering as an opportunity for spiritual growth and development, believing that trials test and develop endurance, patience, character, fortitude, hope, trust in our path to salvation and His Kingdom.
We, as Orthodox Christians, view the lives of the Prophets, Righteous, Saints, Martyrs, Confessors and holy Fathers and Mothers of the Church as the par excellence example of Christian spirituality and authentic life in Christ. They all serve as timeless guides who endured horrific suffering, inspire all believers how to live this joy through sincere faith, solemn prayer and lifting one’s cross. The Holy Apostle Paul reveals how a Christian should act in different circumstances: “In all things we commend ourselves as ministers of God: in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses, in stripes, in imprisonment, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in fasting; by purity, by knowledge, by the Holy Spirit, by sincere agape, by the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right hand an on the left… a sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things” (2 Corinthians 6:4-10). Christ’s Church requires a spurning of immorality and false religions, and devotion to “perfecting holiness in the fear of God” (2 Cor. 7:1).
The Holy Apostle Paul exhorts us to “Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). The Old and New Testament emphasize that faith in God and our communion with Him is one of joy. Nehemiah the Prophet states, “The joy of the Lord is my strength.” Saint Isaac the Syrian wrote, “always ponder on the Holy Word of God and always be filled with the incomprehensible wonder and joy of God.” Divine joy is not fleeting, is not weak, is not temporary, is not empty but eternal and fulfilling. In the divine service of the Vespers of Agape on Pascha Day we chant: A Pascha of delight, a Pascha of the Lord, Pascha; an All-Venerable Pascha has dawned for us; a Pascha on which let us embrace one another with joy, O Pascha, ransom from sorrow! From the tomb as from a bridal chamber, Christ today came forth, and filled the women with joy, saying, “Proclaim ye to the Apostles.”
At the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy of Pascha Sunday we read the Sermon of Saint John Chrysostom and in it he says, “…Let all then, enter into the joy of the Lord. Ye first and last receiving alike your reward, ye rich and poor, rejoice together. Ye sober and ye slothful, celebrate the day. Ye that have kept the fast, and ye that have not, rejoice today; for the Table is richly laden… Christ is risen , and the tomb is emptied of the dead..” Saint Isaac the Syrian wrote: “There is no greater sin than to be insensitive to the joy of the Risen Christ.”
Christianity is not a faith of gloom and doom but celebration and delight. This does not mean that the Christian walks around with a pasted or foolish smile on his face. In looking at a Christian one sees the joy of the Lord in his eyes. It is a solemn, genuine, a revealing joy which originates in the Christian’s heart. The Holy Prophet Habakkuk says, “For though the fig tree will not bear fruit and there be no grapes on the vines; the labor of the olive tree fail and the fields yield no food; though the sheep have no pasture and there be no oxen in the cribs; Yet I will glory in the Lord; I WILL REJOICE IN GOD MY SAVIOR” (Habakkuk 3:17-18).
No Christian ever pretends to be joyful and happy. Whatever challenges we face daily, we confront them with faith and trust in God’s Providence. We believe that there is a purpose and a reason why the Lord allows things to happen whether good and dreadful. When we recite the Lord’s Prayer we say, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven”. This indicates trust in His judgment. His Only-Begotten Son experienced pain, suffering, sorrow, torment, humiliation, betrayal, abandonment, doubt, crucifixion, slander, accusations of blaspheme, and cruelty. Do we consider ourselves as Christians better than our Master and Savior? Why would we go through this earthly and temporal life unscathed?
Christian Tradition records that many early Christian martyrs rejoiced as they faced execution, seeing it as a way to show their profound faith and unconditional love for our Lord Jesus Christ and to be united with Him in suffering and being counted as “worthy” to do so. Saint Polycarpos was a very old man when he suffered martyrdom. When he was told to deny Christ his answer was, “For 86 years have I have served Him and He has done me no wrong. How can I blaspheme my King and my Savior?”
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“Glory Be To GOD
For
All Things!”
– Saint John Chrysostomos
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With sincere agape in His Divine and Glorious Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God
+ Father George
The Eastern Orthodox Christian Ethos 