LK 1:39-45
In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.
And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.”
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved.
Choosing To Find Joy
When I’m excited, I must remain calm. I’ve often made myself sick from being overly excited! As a child I missed out on field trips due to my exhilarations. Imagining Elizabeth’s baby leaping for joy in her womb, I connect it with my history of electrified enthusiasm!
Joy is a boundless and life-altering reservoir requiring surrender and a choice. Saint Ignatius abandoned a life of stability and chose a life of poverty. He let go of wanting to be a war hero and took a path less traveled. Choosing joy means looking beyond current situations to connect with a larger picture. John the Baptist chose to leap in his mother’s womb regardless of not yet being born! Joy undergirds everything even as we struggle with impossibilities.
Where have you chosen to find joy in your life despite the odds?
—Damian Torres-Botello, SJ, is a Jesuit Scholastic of the Midwest Province studying theology at Boston College School of Theology and Ministry; he will be ordained a priest on June 10, 2023.
Prayer
Lord God, who is always full of surprises and hope, reveal to me the moments of my life where I chose joy. Show me that, throughout life’s obstacles, You have been there along the way, and uncover joy for me where I might be overlooking its presence. To You, Lord God, be all and the glory forever and ever, Amen.
—Damian Torres-Botello, SJ