Its force is next only to that of the grace of God. A brother knight once told me of an American couple who had prayed fervently to God with all their heart that He would grant them their deep desire to have a child. After a lengthy time, that prayer was finally answered and a child was born to them who was severely handicapped. The child was born blind, deaf and almost completely paralyzed, requiring constant, draining attention. Without him, we would never have grown so close to each other or to Christ.
Christian joy is a direct result of divine love.
St. Thomas tells us that joy is the condition and the result of friendship. Our joy springs from our friendship with Christ. My prayer, my hope, and my charge for each of you as you go forth from us today is that you may continue to be not afraid and open wide your hearts to Christ. All of you have done this to varying degrees, but continue to open wide the doors of your heart to Christ Jesus, Our Lord, always radiating His joy and love to a broken world, which will come to see Him in the broken bread of your holy joy in the new millennium. My love, our love and prayers will be with you, now and always.