Chritmas, Easter and Pentecost  are holy seasons of joy.   We are filled with the spirit of joy as we journey with Jesus and deepen our faith.

The tradition of the Church lists twelve Fruits of the Holy Spirit. 

The fruits of the Holy Spirit are charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, and chastity. Additionally, the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord

What words of wisdom have the saints given us about joy?

1. Joy is a net of love by which you catch souls!

St. Teresa of Calcutta

2.  Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I say rejoice!

St. Paul the Apostle

3. Do not abandon yourself to despair.  We are the Easter people, and hallelujah is our song.

St John Paul II

 

4.  Joy, with peace, is the sister of charity.  Serve the Lord with laughter.

St. Padre Pio

5.  Christian joy is a gift of God flowing from a good conscience.

St. Philip Neri

6.  The Lord delights in every little step you take.

St. Francis de Sales

7.  Desire to see God, be fearful of losing Him, and find joy in everything that can lead to Him.  If you act in this way, you will always live in great peace.

St. Teresa of Avilla

8.  Joy is the simplest form of Gratitude.

St. John Paul II

9.  The joy promised by the Beatitudes is the very Joy of Jesus himself, a joy sought and found in obedience to the Father, and in the gift of self to others.

St. John Paul II

10.  If we wish to serve God and love our neighbor well, we must manifest our joy in the service we render to Him and them.  Let us open wide our hearts; it is joy which invites us.  Press forward and fear nothing.  

St. Katharine Drexel

11.  God made us for joy.  God is joy and the joy of living reflects the ongoing joy that God felt in creating us.

St. John Paul II

 

12.  Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:  where there is hatred, let me sow love.
where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope.
where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy.

  St. Francis of Assisi

13.  Joy is the most infallible sign of the presence of God.

St. Teresa of Avila

14.  It is characteristic of God and His angels to bring to the soul, when they occupy if, true happiness and spiritual joy; and to drive from it the sadness and trials which the enemy incites in it. 

St. Ignatius of Loyola

15.  Let nothing else please us and cause us delight except our Creator Redeemer and Saviour, the only true God.

St. Francis of Assisi

16.  The world promises us pleasure, but it is only in Jeus that we find joy.

St. Therese of Lisieux

17.  May we always live joyfully.  God is infinite joy.

St. Teresa of the Andes

18.  Jesus is happy to come with us, as truth is happy to be spoken, as life is to be lived, as light to be lit, as love is to be loved, as joy is to be given, as peace, to be spread.

St. Francis of Assisi

19.  Do few things, but do them well, simple joys are holy.

St. Francis of Assisi

20.  No man truly has joy unless he lives in love.

St. Thomas Aquinas

21 But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; That, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding Joyl

St. Peter the Apostle

22.  In the house of God there is a never ending festival;  the angel choir make eternal holiday.  The presence of God’s face gives joy that never fails. 

St. Augustine

23.  OH, God, to know you is life.  To serve You is freedom.  To praise you is the soul’s joy and delight.  Guard me with the power of Your grace here and in all places.  Now and at all times, forever. Amen.

St. Augustine

24.  To me, prayer is a surge of the heart; it is a simple look turned toward heaven, it is a cry of recognition and of love, embracing both trial and joy.

Therese of Lisieux

25.  We who are Christians have a further cause for joy; like Jesus, we know that we are loved by God our Father.  This love transforms our lives and fills us with joy!

St. John Paul II