A Retreat Talk by Adele Jones

  A Retreat Talk 

by Adele Jones 

JOY OF THE LORD

Opening Prayer to the Holy Spirit

Song:  Joy, Joy, Joy

Psalm 100

Open with 2 questions - Joy and Happiness

1.      Is there a difference between Joy and Happiness or are they one and the same?

2.     What is the difference between the two?

Answer to #1    Happiness is an emotional state of well-being and is a temporary feeling tied to external circumstances.

Answer to #2 we experience joy when we achieve selflessness to the point of personal sacrifice. We feel joy when we are spiritually connected to God.  We can have joy even in our sufferings.  Joy is not tied to external circumstances.  We cultivate joy from the inside out.  Now, here’s something for you trivia buffs.  In the New International Version of the Bible, there are 545 references to joy and merriment and happiness and laughing and rejoicing.  And only 158 verses that talk of sorrow and pain and tears and suffering.  The Bible is a book of joy.

Reading:  John 15:9-11  Barbara Martens

Talk-Introduction

  Jesus clearly wants us to have His joy in us so that our joy may be full.  So how can we experience this fullness of joy?  The Bible reveals that God is a being who has great joy and that everyone who comes to know Him enters into the only true and lasting joy possible.  The Psalms overflow with joy and gladness.  Jesus had God’s joy and gladness because He continually knew God’s presence.  Joy comes from a consistent relationship with Jesus Christ...   When our lives are intertwined with his he will help us walk through adversity no matter how high or low our circumstances.  This is the key to joy and gladness, daily to cultivate a sense of God’s presence.  Then even if we go through sufferings, we will not lose our joy, because God is with us.

St. Vincent Pallotti said, “If cheerfulness and joy are lacking, few will be attracted to follow Jesus!”

 Question - Where can you find this joy?  Discuss at your table.

Joy in the Word

  Continue talk:

     In Galations 5:22 Paul speaks about the fruit of the Spirit in our lives.  Joy is one of the fruits in fact it is the second preceded only by love.  If you are filled with the Spirit of God, then this fruit of the Spirit will be obvious in your life.

  First of all you need to read the Word.   We can find this joy in reading the Word of God.  Psalm 19:7 – 8 says, “The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul.  The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart.”  Jesus quoted the verses from the Bible many times in his life.  He was full of joy.   In Luke 7:34 it says that the Son of Man came enjoying life. He ate, he drank, he danced and yes he laughed a lot.  He wasn’t a killjoy.

 So why is it that throughout history Jesus has been portrayed as sad, serious, and somber?  Why have we flattened Jesus into a one-dimensional character instead of understanding that he was both a man of sorrows and a man of joy?  Down through the centuries the man of sorrows was emphasized more than the man of joy.  (Isaiah 53:3) But in Isaiah 61:9 it also says that he will be anointed with the oil of joy.

 Jesus got invited to a lot of parties, and many of his stories are based on parties.  That makes sense when we remember that Jesus enjoyed life.  He was so fully engaged in these parties that some people accused him of being a glutton and a drunk.  He wasn’t a drunk, He was just a party guy.  Jesus’ attitude toward life showed that he was a man of joy.  Remember Jesus’ first miracle at Cana?  It was a joyous occasion, a wedding.  He could have been dancing when his mother interrupted him about the lack of wine. Maybe that’s why he was a tad rude to his mother. The very idea that Jesus told jokes and went for the laugh lines with his audience might be shocking to some of us.  The problem is that you and I just don’t get his humor.  The chasm of language, culture, and time keeps us from fully understanding Jesus’s intent. 

Question:  Imagine Jesus, a man of joy walking through life with you today.  What would he laugh with you about?  Discuss at table

    Joy in Suffering 

But what was the joy that was set before him?  What joy was so rich, so satisfying, and so deep that he was willing to suffer such terrible abuse?  Some of you might be overwhelmed by your sufferings but some of you could top my story in a heartbeat.  The point is not who suffers the most, or how someone else handles the suffering in his or her life, but how you handle the suffering that comes your way.  Sorrow, hurt, and grief are the most natural reactions to tough trials and testing but from the Book of James 1:2 – 18 we make an exciting discovery.  Read James 1:2- 4.  In the worst of times we can still say, with the help of the Spirit at work in our lives developing joy in all kinds of circumstances that “it is well with my soul!” 

It might be wise to go ahead and start preparing to seek treasures of joy in the darkness now.  Each of us needs to be prepared for dark days.  Let your roots go down deep in Jesus so that your faith becomes rich, intimate, and stable, enabling you to withstand the worst this world can throw at you.  Find the treasures of joy when the darkness is so thick. Believe that even in the darkness you are experiencing God can give you joy.  God wants us well.  He doesn't give us sickness.  He offers help and ways to combat diseases. As He traveled throughout Israel, He stopped numerous times to heal the blind, the deaf, the lepers and the brokenhearted.  He raised the dead.  This tells us that God wants us to be whole.  Ask Him for his help constantly. 
         Read Habakkuk 3:17-19

Song Though the Mountains May Fall

What was the joy set before Jesus?

So what was the joy set before Him?  You were the joy set before him!  He suffered so he could be reconciled with you.  The joy of restoring the broken relationship, of living with you forever, that was the joy set before him that was the joy that kept him nailed to the cross.  What a joy to be able to relate to others who suffer, to say that I know what it’s like. What a joy to live knowing that life is brief and every day counts.  What a joy to look at my family and friends and tell them that they matter and I want to spend time with them.  What a joy to live every day knowing that heaven is a place of healing.  This is a joy that comes not in spite of suffering but because of suffering. Heaven is NOW!  We enjoy heaven when we have joy.  Sarah Young says in her book Jesus Today, “A joyful heart will improve your health – spiritually, emotionally, and physically.  So fill your mind with thankful thoughts till your heart overflows with joy.”  Proverbs 17:22 says, “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.”

Joy in creation

   We Christians have been called by Christ to see Him everywhere.  We have been made in His image and likeness, to grasp boldly the Sun in all its brightness, so that we may image His light fully to the world.  We become the creative power of God.  Nothing exists or moves toward perfection except by God’s creative power immanently present in all things.

   We see proof everywhere in God’s creation, birds, singing, animals leaping, flowers, babbling brooks, sun shining, blue skies, and flourishing trees. God gives us richly to enjoy as he is enjoying his creation.  We are constantly evolving.  Look through the eyes of our Cosmic God.  Psalm 19 says, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.” Joy is not optional.  The Bible repeatedly commands us to rejoice.  The most emphatic exhortation is in Philippians 4:4 -7.  (Someone reads Phil 4:4 – 7)

Song: Sing to the Mountains

Break – What robs us of our joy?  List at least 6 things.

Answers to what robs us of our joy

   People are looking in wrong directions in response to their thirst for joy.  We have lost our focus; we have lost sight of what is important in maintaining joy and living the joyful life. They’re all moving about determined to satisfy the longings of their heart. 

1.      Looking for love and joy in People

  False source of joy is people: husband, wives, children, friends, companions, and the world.  We consistently look to them to provide joy.  Why is this?  Because we’re expecting the people in our lives to meet needs they cannot meet.  They were never supposed to.

2.      Looking for joy in things

A new house, a new car, cities, towns, or even countries.  How often do you catch yourself dreaming of the next place you’ll live?  Wherever we go one thing stays the same our needs and expectations move with us.  No matter where we live, we are tempted to compare our place to others.  I say to myself there will always be a better place for me.

3.      Looking for joy in possessions

Luke 12:15 says, “Beware!  Guard against every kind of greed.”  Life in not measured by how much you own.  Jesus lays it out in no uncertain terms in Matthew 6:19-21,” Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them and where thieves break in and steal.  Store your treasure in heaven.” The Bible also tells us that always wanting just a little bit more causes us to become jealous and envious of others.  God is the only true source of our Joy.

4.      Position

Sometimes people think being in the hierarchy will bring us joy.  But sooner or later it gets lonely at the top.  Striving for a different position or title is not wrong.  But joy will not survive in an environment of suspicion, greed, or resentment.  They imply that a new position or greater recognition will bring more joy than what you have now.  And that idea won’t hold water.

5.      Worry – Nothing kills joy faster than worry.  Some of us are fabulous worriers – We’ve elevated worry to an art form.  You can earn money on the side worrying for other people.  Remember our definition of Joy:  Joy is the settled assurance that God is in control of all the details of my life.  We cannot have joy and worry at the same time.  When you’re worrying you are not trusting.  A fundamental part of expressing trust in God is learning how to gaze at him and only glance at our problems.

6.      Stay away from negative people.  They can rob you of your joy.  (joke) Spend time with positive thinking people.  Be a positive thinker yourself.

7.     Anger, fear, materialism, greed, jealousy, complaining and pride rob us of our joy.

8.     Arrogance

9.     Unforgiveness

 Joy in Loving Intimacy – John 17:13

First, we spend time often with God in his Word and prayer.  His word is truthful as well as joyful.  Not only is God a God of joy, but God’s word to us is also a word of joy.  The thirst we have for the Living Water is also Jesus’ thirst for us.  In John 4:22 – 24 Jesus says to the Samaritans, The hour is coming when you will worship neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem…True worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and truth.  What a revelation!  “The hour is coming when you will worship out of who you are”, says Macrina Wiederkehr, OSB in her book “A Tree Full of Angels.”  The hour is coming when you will realize that the spirit and the truth live within you.  As Macrina says, “You are a portable chapel.”  I like to say we are portable tabernacles, because Jesus is just as present within you as He is in the tabernacle of your church.

 Second, relate everything even little events in your day to God’s providence. 

Thirdly, practice some kind of meditation and/or centering prayer.  Treat Jesus as your friend and tell him everything that’s on your mind.  Then listen to what he has to say to you.

 Fourth, another good practice is Lectio Divina. Reading or, more exactly, listening to the book we believe to be divinely inspired; the most ancient method of developing the friendship of Christ, using Scripture texts as topics of conversation with Jesus.

 God desires that you be full of joy and gladness.  You will find it only in Him.  As you grow in God’s joy and gladness he will be glorified through your life.  God is most glorified in us when we are most intimate with him.

 Joy in All Things – Let us look at some things that bring us joy.  List at least five things that bring us joy.

1.      Gratitude – those who are joyful will thank God.  Joy and gratitude always go together.

2.     Associate with joyful people not negative ones.

3.     Celebrate daily – find a reason to celebrate something good daily.

4.     Bring joy to others – Hebrews: 13 -16 “Don’t forget to do good and to share with others.”  

5.     Make time for yourself.  Joy withers in our life when we are too busy.  The antidote of busyness is balance.

6.     Forgiveness – forgive others and be reconciled

Psalm 149

Intercessory prayers

Concluding prayer

Song: Blest Be the Lord

Apostles for Today -November

Apostles for Today

Prayer and Reflection

November 2018

Holiness, A Journey Made Together

“Hungering and thirsting for righteousness: that is holiness” (GE 79).

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for justice for they will be filled.” (Mt 5:6)

I think I have been hungering and thirsting for righteousness since I was a small child growing up in the fifties as the middle child with four brothers. My dad was on the basic wage and didn't want my mother to work. Mum struggled to make ends meet. The boys would play outside while I would help mum with the housework. I was told that the money would have to be spent on the boys’ education rather than mine as they would be the bread-winners for their families. Fortunately, I won scholarships and was able to go through to University level and postgraduate studies. Lots of experiences though made me hunger and thirst for women not to be pushed into the background or abused but rather for all people to be treated with equal dignity and respect. I believed that God loved all of us equally.

No matter how poor our family was, my mother would help out others and my father was a member of the local St Vincent de Paul conference. As I grew I became aware of the neighborhood, the society, and the world and the injustices that abound.

I started teaching primary school at nineteen and four years later was Principal of a Catholic primary school with some pupils who came from the local area and others who came from a very large Migrant Hostel. In the nineteen-seventies, they came from Argentina, Chile, East Timor, Vietnam, Czechoslovakia, the Philippines, Hungary, Iran, and other troubled parts of the world.

As a staff we worked hard to ensure that these children could get as good a start in their new home as possible. They arrived not speaking English and most had experienced trauma. Some had parents who had been killed or that they had been separated from.

They missed friends, grandparents and extended family members. In such a situation how could I not hunger and thirst for righteousness and do whatever I could to try and bring it about for these children and their families.

There are so many things that make me angry in this world because they are not in accord with what I believe is the will of God. For me, righteousness is about trying to discern what God wants for people and for all of creation. This means, first of all, being in right relationship with our God of infinite love. How I live and the choices I make matter. I also need to work at being in right relationship with myself and with others. I was older when I came to know Pallotti’s charism and with it so many things fell into place and were inspirational.

St Vincent Pallotti was an apostle in the way he lived his spiritual, priestly and corporal life. He worked at bringing about change to correct some of the injustices of his time. He saw boys who needed education and set up evening schools for them. He found women to care for orphaned girls. He had his eyes open to the society around him and found ways to make a difference. He gathered people from various states of life to help him to carry out the works that would transform the lives of those who were cared for. His actions showed that he hungered and thirsted after justice and did something about bringing it about, not just as an individual but as a member of a growing community.

This very much followed the way Jesus lived as an Apostle of the Father. There are so many stories in the Gospel of Jesus challenging people to live in right relationship with their God.

The story of the cleansing of the temple is the one that first springs to mind of Jesus acting with righteous anger.

Before the destruction of the temple Judaism was a cultic religion were people needed to bring offerings of animals and birds to be sacrificed by the priests. The problem was that the sellers and money-changers had moved onto the forecourt of the temple which was part of the religious precinct. This meant that profane Roman coins, such as the denarius were being exchanged for acceptable Jewish shekels and so defiling this sacred space. As a Jew, Jesus could see that this way of acting was not in accord with Jewish teaching, with being in right relationship with God and so he did something about it. Arguably this was the final straw that led to his crucifixion.

In today’s world standing for a viewpoint that differs from the popular one takes courage too. Standing up for and welcoming migrants and refugees can take courage. Confidence in a God of infinite love can give us courage to take a stand when some groups of people, such as the indigenous, the homeless, the aged, those with mental illness or those with drug addictions, are treated as less worthwhile or of lesser dignity while the pockets of the wealthy are further filled. As an individual, I can make a small difference but as individuals working together we can make big differences.

In his recent apostolic exhortation, Gaudete et Exsultate, which is on the call to holiness in today’s world, in Chapter 3, Pope Francis draws on the Beatitudes. He tells us: “Hungering and thirsting for righteousness: that is holiness” (GE 79). Try and get hold of a copy and read it. It is available on the Holy See website in a number of languages.

For personal and communal reflection and prayer:

1.     What is your story of becoming aware of injustice in your world? Are you ever unjust in the ways you treat others? Or yourself?

2.     Are you aware of the injustices in this world, in your community or social context? What can you do to bring about difference or do you lack the courage?

3.     Have you ever considered, or prayed for, the varying gifts that people, those who are not ordained, including the married, single and consecrated, and those ordained, have that could be used together to foster the cause of Justice?

                                                 Anne Dowling,

                                                 Mariana Community, Australia.

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Segretariato Generale, Unione dell’Apostolato Cattolico

Piazza San Vincenzo Pallotti 204, 00187 Roma, Italia uac@uniopal.org