So Much For That

[Methos]

Pope Francis: Fear Is Not A Christian Attitude

A fearful Christian is a person who has not understood the message of Jesus.

A Christian without joy is not Christian. A Christian who continually lives in sadness is not Christian. And a Christian who, in the moment of trial, of illness, of so many difficulties, loses peace — something is lacking in him.

I guess I’m not Christian as I don’t know joy. Aside from brief episodes of pleasure and confidence, sadness and fear are my constant companions. My limitations are well-known to me. Also, I’ve seen when those Christians have faltered in those trials and difficulties in private when in public they seemed the opposite. Then, turn around and criticize me for not having faith.

Christian joy is not simply enjoyment, is not a fleeting cheerfulness. Christian joy is a gift, it is a gift of the Holy Spirit. And having a heart that is always joyful because the Lord has triumphed, the Lord reigns, the Lord is at the right hand of the Father, the Lord has looked upon me and called me and has given me His grace, and has made me a Son of the Father… That is Christian joy. A Christian lives in joy.

Pleasure, I know. Happiness, I only have very vague memories that are fading more and more with time. Joy? Let me ask you, do you have glztr? Will do you? Do you have glztr? Don’t know what it is? Well, it the same when people speak of joy. The above might seem like a simple statement. If asked, I could repeat and seem knowledgeable and wise. I wouldn’t know joy if it hit me with a 2x4 and then stomped me into the ground. I don’t know or understand it and I doubt I ever will.

 

[Contra_Mundum_1]

Maybe you could try and comprehend joy as a more quiet feeling of calm and of something deep inside you that is a source of security no matter what happens around you.

 

[Rosebud77]

Pope Francis: Fear Is Not A Christian Attitude

I guess I’m not Christian as I don’t know joy. Aside from brief episodes of pleasure and confidence, sadness and fear are my constant companions. My limitations are well-known to me. Also, I’ve seen when those Christians have faltered in those trials and difficulties in private when in public they seemed the opposite. Then, turn around and criticize me for not having faith.

Pleasure, I know. Happiness, I only have very vague memories that are fading more and more with time. Joy? Let me ask you, do you have glztr? Will do you? Do you have glztr? Don’t know what it is? Well, it the same when people speak of joy. The above might seem like a simple statement. If asked, I could repeat and seem knowledgeable and wise. I wouldn’t know joy if it hit me with a 2x4 and then stomped me into the ground. I don’t know or understand it and I doubt I ever will.

words fail. Not at what YOU say… many years ago I had ( still have) an illness dr decided was not real. Psychs said the same. Christian healers jumped in… and told me I was still ill because I lacked faith… Can you imagine that? All but destroyed me… fast forward a few decades and finally the right diagnosis, M.E which you call Chronic Fatigue with Immuno Deficiency in a severe form and with much collateral damage through the years. Here is a guide I follow now. Unless the person speaking knows me and is face to face with me they cannot know me or dictate to me. I have learned that the hard way and thankfully in these last years I am more at peace then I have ever been . Still rotten sic k but at peace, My experience of joy is not anyone else;s. Had enough of the Happy Clappy Brigade in past years… My faith is what matters, So is yours, No cookie cutters for Christians .

 

[Irishmom2]

I have to agree that I think that the word JOY makes me think of some kind of ecstatic happiness, and that by that definition, I have rarely experienced Joy.

So I have learned to adjust my definition. My Joy includes thankfulness, contentment, wonder, awe, and peace.

Methos, I think many people live with sadness and fear. It is difficult to not have those feelings, and yet, if we always remember that God is there for us and we trust in Him, it makes the fear and the sadness bearable.

 

[Tigg]

Pope Francis: Fear Is Not A Christian Attitude

I guess I’m not Christian as I don’t know joy. Aside from brief episodes of pleasure and confidence, sadness and fear are my constant companions. My limitations are well-known to me. Also, I’ve seen when those Christians have faltered in those trials and difficulties in private when in public they seemed the opposite. Then, turn around and criticize me for not having faith.

I once read a book that spoke of human characteristics and how specific personalities each give glory to God. Melancholia and depression are very real for some people. Their prayer life and faith come from a different dimension and God works within each individual according to their traits to draw them closer to His heart. Is there more than one definition for joy as Contra and Irishmom have suggested? Can the God who knows you better than you, yourself, bring you to a place of victory over sadness and fear with greater merit besides, since you have a special struggle. I think He can and desires it. Since it is the Spirit, not your own effort that has given you insight and the courage to acknowledge your limitations, that should be a sign to you that God is more than ready to bring you to a new place where perhaps you might shine in a different light other than the “joy” as experienced by others. That light would shine just as brightly for God, and would be unique from all His other stars.

 

[fred_conty]

Pope Francis: Fear Is Not A Christian Attitude

I guess I’m not Christian as I don’t know joy. Aside from brief episodes of pleasure and confidence, sadness and fear are my constant companions. My limitations are well-known to me. Also, I’ve seen when those Christians have faltered in those trials and difficulties in private when in public they seemed the opposite. Then, turn around and criticize me for not having faith.

Pleasure, I know. Happiness, I only have very vague memories that are fading more and more with time. Joy? Let me ask you, do you have glztr? Will do you? Do you have glztr? Don’t know what it is? Well, it the same when people speak of joy. The above might seem like a simple statement. If asked, I could repeat and seem knowledgeable and wise. I wouldn’t know joy if it hit me with a 2x4 and then stomped me into the ground. I don’t know or understand it and I doubt I ever will.

It is important to remember that the Holy Father is giving his personal opinion on the matter and he is not making a dogmatic statement.

There are plenty of times when joy is understandably missing. Times like funerals, dark night of the soul, loss of job, and so many more large disappointments. So this needs to be seen for what it is.

I do believe in general he is right in so far as we remember the love of Jesus in our lives and his living within us by his grace and the promises he made to us.

May God bless and keep you. May God’s face shine on you. May God be kind to you and give you peace.

 

[christofirst]

Pope Francis: Fear Is Not A Christian Attitude
I guess I’m not Christian as I don’t know joy. Aside from brief episodes of pleasure and confidence, sadness and fear are my constant companions. My limitations are well-known to me. Also, I’ve seen when those Christians have faltered in those trials and difficulties in private when in public they seemed the opposite. Then, turn around and criticize me for not having faith.
Pleasure, I know. Happiness, I only have very vague memories that are fading more and more with time. Joy? Let me ask you, do you have glztr? Will do you? Do you have glztr? Don’t know what it is? Well, it the same when people speak of joy. The above might seem like a simple statement. If asked, I could repeat and seem knowledgeable and wise. I wouldn’t know joy if it hit me with a 2x4 and then stomped me into the ground. I don’t know or understand it and I doubt I ever will.

I think that is a wonderful statement from our Holy Father, and I’m glad you posted it. I think he is holding up the ideal - what we as Christians aspire to - with full knowledge that many of us lack this joy and are full of fear. This does not make you or me any less of a Christian. Rather, when our first response is one of fear, we might challenge it before it paralyzes us or locks us into perpetual negativity, which attracts no one. Pope Francis, it seems to me, is always thinking about evangelization. In this, he is only echoing the words of Our Lord, “These things I have said to you that My joy may be in you, and your joy may be made full.” Jesus and Pope Francis know that we will not be happy all of the time here in this Valley of Tears, and for some of us, maybe never in this life. The joy, then, can be in our hope, which is not so much an emotional feeling, but a firm conviction of a better future. But again, it something we all aspire to, not a prerequisite for being followers of Christ. And for some it will be easier than for others. Try not to let it bring you down (easier said than done, I know).