"A wise priest (Fr. Joseph Minuth, if there are any Mizzou tigers here) once told me that both the devil and the Holy Spirit whisper to you that you should be holy. But the devil does so in a way that shames and scares—you’re not doing enough, you don’t care enough, you’re not disciplined enough. The Holy Spirit does so in a way that convicts your spirit towards joy and justice."
This right here gave me chills. What a powerful insight. And to your point, when we are shamed and scared we give in to more and more action, thoughtless striving to do and be and achieve - even when it comes to supposed holiness. All of this blinds us to what is right in front of us, the good and the beautiful and the joyful. The small ways we are called by God every day to really be holy. I need to remind myself of this, thank you.
Claire...YES. YES. Somehow, it's taken me till the ripe age of 40 to see joy as resistance, not as futility...and that, as you so beautifully said, it's not about white-knuckling or pretending. It's about embracing joy amidst all the pain. I was reading along and thought of Sarah's book, and then bam - you quoted it.
embracing joy amidst all the pain - yes! The perfect way to put it. Harder to live it, of course, but the kind of thought that will hopefully take hold and grow stronger and stronger with time and prayer.
So good, Claire. Also, I just put Everything Sad is Untrue on my 2024 reading list - glad to hear you enjoyed it! (Though I know "enjoyed" might not quite be the right word for this particular book.) https://emformarvelous.com/my-2024-reading-list/
This was so good, Claire (she says even as she just read Wendell Berry write “any readers who like your work, doubt their judgment” so oops), a nuanced and full bodied cry for joy in the midst of suffering.
"A wise priest (Fr. Joseph Minuth, if there are any Mizzou tigers here) once told me that both the devil and the Holy Spirit whisper to you that you should be holy. But the devil does so in a way that shames and scares—you’re not doing enough, you don’t care enough, you’re not disciplined enough. The Holy Spirit does so in a way that convicts your spirit towards joy and justice."
This right here gave me chills. What a powerful insight. And to your point, when we are shamed and scared we give in to more and more action, thoughtless striving to do and be and achieve - even when it comes to supposed holiness. All of this blinds us to what is right in front of us, the good and the beautiful and the joyful. The small ways we are called by God every day to really be holy. I need to remind myself of this, thank you.
Loved today's essay....the holidays should be celebrated, yet I feel so bogged down every year trying to make them perfect. I'm going to work on that!
And yes, you have at least one Mizzou Tiger subscriber!
MIZ! :)
Claire...YES. YES. Somehow, it's taken me till the ripe age of 40 to see joy as resistance, not as futility...and that, as you so beautifully said, it's not about white-knuckling or pretending. It's about embracing joy amidst all the pain. I was reading along and thought of Sarah's book, and then bam - you quoted it.
embracing joy amidst all the pain - yes! The perfect way to put it. Harder to live it, of course, but the kind of thought that will hopefully take hold and grow stronger and stronger with time and prayer.
This was something I really needed to read. Joy is an act of resistance--so true but too easy to forget. Thank you for this uplifting essay!
ZOU!
So good, Claire. Also, I just put Everything Sad is Untrue on my 2024 reading list - glad to hear you enjoyed it! (Though I know "enjoyed" might not quite be the right word for this particular book.) https://emformarvelous.com/my-2024-reading-list/
This was so good, Claire (she says even as she just read Wendell Berry write “any readers who like your work, doubt their judgment” so oops), a nuanced and full bodied cry for joy in the midst of suffering.