Spirituality: Easter Joy

Happy Easter!

Intimacy with Jesus is the central grace of the Spiritual Exercises, which helps us experience the risen Jesus who rejoices to share with us the boundless intimacy of his resurrected life. The contemplation on the Love of God has us reflect on the limitless blessings that God cascades down on our world like they rays of the sun. Our response is, “The Take, Lord, Receive” prayer.

Intimacy holds nothing back. Those in a truly intimate relationship share everything. Ignatius wants us to be in this type of friendship with Jesus, who is all heart, where we want to share everything with him, and he with us. Jesus is all heart.

Henry David Thoreau once wrote, “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately…and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived… I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life… to put to rout all that was not life…

As we enter into Easter’s joyful season, let us pray for the grace of “joy with Christ in joy.”  Yes, Jesus is joyful because of God’s victory over sin and death and he wants to share his joy with us. This joy is more than a mere happiness of contentment – but a deep sense that all is well and will be well. Life will still be chaotic, but all will be well in the end.

Joy does not burst onto the scene, but is more subtle. It grows slowly and may scarcely command our attention. We seek for joy in the same way we seek God – we heighten our senses and pay attention to the details. At some point, we will notice the insignificant event that is infused with joy and we will be caught with surprise.

Happy Easter, my friends. Together, let us pray for our lives to be enveloped by Christ’s joy.

He is Risen, my friends. Indeed. He is truly Risen. Alleluia! Alleluia!