By Father John Catoir, JCD

To master the art of living it’s important to understand this basic principle: Joy Prevails Over Sorrow. We know from divine revelation that there is an after-life; where all our tears will be wiped away, and all the broken fences will be mended. The gift of eternal life is reason enough for rejoicing in the present moment.

A supernatural perspective is so important for attaining human happiness. Given all the miseries that befall every human life, I often wonder how the atheists manage to live joyfully, given their refusal to believe in the necessity of a first cause.

In my year-long correspondence with astronomer Carl Sagan, may he rest in peace, I asked him, “How can you conclude there is no God when everyone knows that something doesn’t come from nothing?  The cosmos, with all its precisely designed solar systems, must have had a Supreme Intelligence behind it.”

 He replied, “Why does there have to be a first cause. Maybe everything in the universe always was?” I said, “That’s a big maybe. I wouldn’t want to bet my life on a maybe”.  It seems to me that atheism is more a matter of the will than the intellect. The will to disbelieve in God’s existence is often related to the desire to be free from any accountability to a Divine being.

Sooner or later, those who believe that the theory of evolution explains the origin of mankind, must face the fact that it does not. Where did the oceans come from for the fish to evolve into humans?

 I’d rather be a saint than a non-believer. Saints are grateful in all circumstances, they tend to rejoice both, when it rains and when the sun shines. Saints are instinctively joyful because they believe deeply that God loves them. Their very joy is a sign of God’s presence in them.

The greatest sorrow is not to be a saint. Good people, who consider themselves saints-in-training, know down deep that everything that they’ve ever accomplished in life has only been possible through the grace and generosity of God. Once you accept the fact that God loves you, your life takes on a new meaning.

 You then begin the process of ‘Divinization’; i.e., the process of living joyfully, with a grateful heart in all circumstances. Divine revelation teaches us the God not only loves us, but that He wants us to love Him in return.

 “The greatest honor we can give Almighty God is to live joyfully because of our belief in His love”- Blessed Julian of Norwich. From the time you were in your mother’s womb, God loved you. He will continue to love you throughout your entire life.

 If you are sorrowing over the loss of a loved one, or are experiencing a health problem, or suffering any heartache please be brave. Believe with all your heart that God’s love will bring you through all the storms of life until you are safely home with Him in heaven.

May the Lord be your strength and your joy.

Father John Catoir, J.C.D., is a retired priest of the Paterson Diocese.