Today the Church takes a break from the penitential color violet (often referred to as purple) which symbolizes penance particularly because Pilate dressed Jesus in a purple robe to mock his kingship. Today, however, is Gaudete Sunday and the color is Rose (often referred to as pink) as we anticipate the joy of Christ’s birth and rejoicing.
J.O.Y. is Jesus, Others, You.
Life itself gets in the way of joy. We experience grief, paying bills, job concerns, and terrified at times for our kids. At its root, anxiety, or stress, whether deeper or merely transient describes a chokehold that hinders our ability to breathe deeply due to a feeling of tightness and shortness of breath. One way out is by singing holy music which really helps one to breathe and gives us joy. Singing, in general, releases endorphins and oxytocin, which are brain chemicals that can lower stress and anxiety. When you sing, your heart rate slows down and you breathe more deeply, which can help you feel calmer. When sacred music is sung, it gives existential meaning by the words, along with the benefits of singing.
St. Augustine was worried that congregations would pay more attention to the music than to the holy words, and St. Ambrose was accused of leading his congregation astray with the charms of his hymns (‘hymnorum carminibus’).1
These examples speak of an ideal of feeling completely immersed in praise and connection with the divine, expressed in singing sacred music.
St. Paul sets the benchmark for singing holy music in Colossians 3:16, which says “teach and admonish one another in all wisdom with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs.” Paul’s concern here is not musical genres, but rather the “spiritual” quality of the songs with lyrics about Christ for the purpose of “teaching and admonishing each other” 2
To admonish the sinner is one of the spiritual works of mercy that involves helping someone who has sinned to find their way back to God through repentance and reconciliation. Since it is a spiritual work of mercy, it is to be done in love and compassion. Priests are especially called to do this. And the person being warned is supposed to be grateful. (1 Thess 5:13).
God wants to use songs to warn His people as they sing and pray the words of a hymn.
How many admonishing or warning songs or hymns can you find? You might find a few in paging through the hymnal.
E.g., the second verse of a common Advent hymn called “On Jordan's Bank the Baptist's Cry,” says, “Then cleansed be every life from sin: make straight the way for God within,...”
A really good way to grow in Advent is to listen to no secular music and come up with a Catholic Advent Playlist, and then a Christmas Playlist beginning on Christmas Eve until January 8, 2024, when the Church recognizes the feast of the Baptism of the Lord and the official end of the Christmas season.
To illustrate the importance of this resolution of no secular music, consider that one of our parish seminarians gave a vocation awareness talk last month at all the Masses. He is in the propaedeutic stage of the seminary. Pro- means before. Paedeutic "to teach.” So, he is in that pre-seminary year before major studies to help him undo the significant imbalance present between the lifestyle promoted by contemporary society and priestly formation. You need a year of human formation in a separate community and detox from the culture. Which means no cell phones and no secular music for one year.
2.Serving others is the second way to joy.
Not like, one kid who said to Santa, “Now that you’ve taken my order, can you give me a tracking number?”
The crowds asked John the Baptist, “What should we do?” He said to them in reply,
“Whoever has two cloaks should share with the person who has none. And whoever has food should do likewise.”
Repentance involves action to produce fruit in keeping with repentance (Matthew 3:8). Charity moves us to be attentive to others and to meet their needs rather than looking for justifications to defend our interests, Pope Benedict XVI says.
To illustrate: Drawing on social science, researchers created three groups.
1.The Moral Deeds Group: “Today,” they were told, “we would like you to do at least one moral deed for others.” E.g., donating to charity, picking up trash (to help the community), giving money to a homeless person, helping someone with their work.
2. Moral Thoughts Group: was told, “Today, we would like you to think at least one moral thought for others,” Which is thinking about another person or group of people in a positive way, praying for them, hoping they succeed.
3.Treat Yourself Group: Today, we would like you to do at least one positive thing for yourself. This could be buying yourself a gift, taking yourself out to a movie, spending time with a friend who will make you happy, giving yourself a break to relax, or enjoying a delicious meal.
At the end, the Moral Deeds Group reported higher scores on a range of well-being measures than the Moral Thoughts Group, and both reported higher scores than the Treat Yourself Group. Those caring for others actively felt greater purpose in life and sense of control, while the others did not. They were also the only ones who felt less anger and social isolation.
The end results were clear, and consistent with a huge body of data showing that focusing less on yourself and your desires will make you happier. This is not to argue you should stop praying for others or stop paying attention to your own needs. As they say on the airlines, you must “put on your own oxygen mask first” so you can best help other people.3
Joy also comes from yourself.
Your set range of happiness is based somewhat on your biological parent’s level of happiness. Wealth has a surprisingly low correlation to happiness because the less fortunate in life are generally just as happy as others with more money. Only extreme poverty can make people less happy.
Ways to increase your happiness is to forgive, and to deliberately go against what one’s sinful tendency might be. Choosing the opposite of what one instinctively desires.
And trust in God’s Providence for the future. We are called to have a particular aversion to the use of memory which shuts out the future. This use of memory shows a distrust of the mercy, power, and love of God. Our present suffering is not the final story of our lives. It is a suffering with one who also triumphed, so there is hope.6
We also must recognize thoughts that rob our peace. We must displace evil thoughts. Recognize that some come from Satan. Reject or simply ignore them. Practice custody of the mind.
C. S. Lewis used to talk about the difference between joy and pleasure. Joy comes from within. It is steady and abiding. Legitimate pleasure, on the other hand, comes and goes with whatever is happening in our environment. It is extrinsic because it arises from the outside. And non-legit pleasure enslaves and robs inner peace. 4
To nurture joy: The order is Jesus, Others, Yourself.
1. MOLLY LESTER, The Politics of Sound and Song: Lectors and Cantors in Early Medieval Iberia, The Journal of Ecclesiastical History, January 1, 2021 pg. 478
2. Joel White, THE PARAENETIC USE OF “SPIRITUAL SONGS” (COL 3,16B) IN COLOSSIANS, Biblica, January 1, 2020 pg. 70
3. Arthur C. Brooks and Oprah Winfrey, Build the Life You Want, from Chapter 4.
4. King Duncan, Jingle Bells at a Funeral, Sermons.com
