Photo by Hotblack, 2010, MorgueFile.com
Do you now, or have you ever felt JOY? How would you define it?
Here’s what Pope Francis has to say:
“When he awakens to the world, does not man feel, in addition to the natural desire to understand and take possession of it, the desire to find within it his fulfillment and happiness?
As everyone knows, there are several degrees of this “happiness.” Its most noble expression is joy, or “happiness” in the strict sense, when man, on the level of his higher faculties, finds his peace and satisfaction in the possession of a known and loved good. Thus, man experiences joy when he finds himself in harmony with nature, and especially in the encounter, sharing and communion with other people.
All the more does he know spiritual joy or happiness when his spirit enters into possession of God, known and loved as the supreme and immutable good. Poets, artists, thinkers, but also ordinary men and women, simply disposed to a certain inner light, have been able and still are able, in the times before Christ and in our own time and among us, to experience something of the joy of God.” — Pope Francis, Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel)
A Few More Definitions…
“This is the true joy in life…being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one… being a force of Nature instead of a feverish selfish little clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy.” — George Bernard Shaw
“Joy is our goal, our destiny. We cannot know who we are except in Joy. Not knowing Joy, we do not know ourselves.”– Marianne Williamson
“The beating heart of the universe is holy joy.” —Martin Buber
“Joy is the flag you fly when the Prince of Peace is in residence within your heart.”– Wilfred Peterson
“Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” — Psalm 30:5
What is “Joy” to you?
Translating a World on the Edge 