Fr. Michael Williams

Everybody in the world wants to be happy. St Augustine observed: ‘We all want to live happily; in the whole human race there is no one who does not desire this’.

Ken Dodd, the great comedian has brought happiness with his humour to many people; he sang that ‘happiness is the greatest gift that I possess’. And he thanked the Lord for that gift. The statue of Bill Shankly outside the Kop has an inscription that says, ‘he made the people happy’. And he did. One of my earliest memories is Bill Shankly’s Liverpool beating Newcastle in the 1974 FA Cup Final; I was very happy that day. But these two examples of happiness are examples of momentary happiness. Jokes pass away and so do football matches. In today’s gospel Jesus speaks of a happiness that is of a different order to that of Ken Dodd’s or Bill Shankly’s; a happiness we can experience in this world and reaches it’s fullness in the next life.

St Augustine noted that, ‘We all want to live happily; in the whole human race there is no one who does not desire this’. As a young man Augustine looked for happiness in many earthly things, but they ultimately left him feeling empty, because he was seeking happiness in the wrong place. He looked for happiness in endless sensuous experiences and in luxurious living and strange philosophies. But they only ever provided fleeting moments of pleasure for him, they never satisfied the deepest longings of his heart. But his restless heart continued to search for what would satisfy it. He eventually came to the realisation that only God can satisfy our deepest desires, because ‘God is love and anyone who lives in love, lives in God’ (1 Jn 4). Once Augustine had discovered Christ, he had found what he was looking for. Augustine would write, ‘You have made us for yourself and our hearts are restless till they rest in You’.

In the gospel Jesus spells out to us the way to true happiness. They are happy, ‘who are poor in spirit’; who see themselves as a child in the presence of God, who own nothing, but realise all they have comes from God and belongs to God. They are happy, ‘who are gentle’; who remain serene, humble and steadfast in adversity and do not give way to resentment; they are happy, ‘who mourn’; who are sad because of their own sins and the sins of others and the injustices of the world; they are happy ‘who thirst for what is right and are persecuted in the cause of right’; who care deeply about what is right for others, and will be prepared to suffer for it; they are happy, ‘who are merciful’; who notice, help and support a person in need; they are happy ‘who are pure in heart’; who have pure, honourable motives, with no hidden deceit or dishonesty. Helped by God’s grace we should constantly strive to cleanse our hearts; they are happy ‘who are peacemakers’; who foster peace in themselves and in others; they are happy ‘who are persecuted on account of Jesus and His Kingdom. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in Heaven’.

Adopting the way to happiness that Jesus proposes is not without difficulty; Augustine’s journey to happiness was not without struggle and difficulty. When we try to live the life of heaven in this world we will inevitably come up against the powers of this world, which do not want the life of heaven in this world. But we can experience the happiness that Jesus offers, even now in this world. Indeed now is the time to make room for God in our lives and let His love grow within us. Only in Heaven will it reach its peak. Then we can say with the psalmist, ‘You will show me the path of life, the fullness of joy in Your Presence, at Your right hand happiness forever’ (Psalm 15).