Radical joy: Finding happiness in the midst of chaos

	Living the Scriptures  with St. Paul University  Catholic Center  Cecelia Klingele

Hope. Peace. Rejoicing. Easter has arrived.

The readings for this week are giddy with optimism, overflowing with the goodness of the present and the eager anticipation of things yet to come - a far cry from the somber, penitent themes of Triduum.

Reading them, I feel guilty at first, disconnected from the intense happiness of the Easter Scriptures. With law school graduation two short months away, I find myself feeling more overwhelmed by assignments, clients, and research projects than by the joy of the Easter season.

Second Sunday of Easter (April 3, 2005) Acts 2:42-47 Ps 118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24 1 Pt 1:3-9 Jn 20:19-31

In this week's first reading, Luke describes the practices and attitudes of early Christian communities. I look around my own little "Christian commune," searching for inspiration and trying to find similarities between my life and the community described in Acts.

Instead, I observe two of my young daughters arguing over possession of what appears to be an unidentifiable, partially broken cereal box toy. My two year old lisps, at the top of her lungs, that she is "Thtuck behind the couch." The baby is alternating between fits of giggles and fits of crying.

A large pile of ungraded papers is strewn across the coffee table in what I vow is a precursor to work. On my way to grade them, I trip over a backpack full of undone homework, almost dropping the baby, who - thank heaven - finds it funny instead of terrifying. Hardly utopia.

Of course - I quickly realize - the early church wasn't living in utopia, either. The Scriptures describe the early Christian community as filled with prayer, generosity, and love.

That community was also grounded in the messy realities of life. Like Christians today, most early Christians cared for fussy toddlers and rambunctious children, held positions within the secular community, and tended to the monotonies of daily life.

They also faced the constant and imminent threat of public sanction for their faith. The presence of joy in their lives wasn't a result of the absence of difficulty. Rather, it was the by-product of a faith strong enough to overcome obstacles - an "indescribable and glorious joy" that came from faith in Jesus Christ and his resurrection.

That makes sense. It wasn't in spite of the cross that early Christians maintain their patience, generosity, and happiness: it was because of the cross. It was, as Peter recounts in the second reading, a "living hope" born "through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead."

No wonder the community grew. Joy in the face of utopia is nothing surprising; joy in the face of adversity is impressive. The Christian community grew because "every day" its members had found a faith that could co-exist with even the most difficult obstacles.

It's evening now, and I replay the events of the night in my memory. Though the frozen pizza we ate for dinner wouldn't qualify as fine dining, the heartily sung "Johnny Appleseed" blessing, followed by rowdy conversation and childish giggles were undeniable evidence of "exultation and sincerity of heart."

The two girls who fought earlier in the day shared pizza toppings between them (mushrooms to one, red peppers to the other) in what I hope was a primitive start to a future of distributing goods "according to each one's need." Faith and joy co-exist with messy rooms and to-do lists.

The papers on the table are still ungraded, the homework still untouched. Chaos and challenge are ever-present realities that faith cannot - ought not - avoid.

	Reflection questions • How can I share the joy of Easter in the midst of my challenges and busyness? • What can I do to become more aware of the blessings in my life?

And yet, as my children lie sleeping and I prepare for the night's work, I realize that in many ways my modern family is not so far removed from the early Christian communities. No amount of busyness, persecution, difficulty, or trial can overcome the joy of the resurrection - not 2,000 years ago and not today.

It's Easter, chaos and all. Alleluia.

Cecelia Klingele is a third year law student at the University of Wisconsin Law School, and a mother of five. In her free time, she sleeps.

St. Paul's Web site is www.stpaulscc.org

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