Taking the Time to Make a Difference

I never thought a fast food store could capture such truth in so few words. I should have known better. The words as I recall were “Wanted: Smiling faces. Apply inside.” I knew when I saw those words that the fast food people also wanted quick hands and long-standing feet. A happy face is just not enough – but I know that a lot of research went into those few words, and I believe the fast food people really meant what they said. What brought that slogan to mind was a feature in the April 2009 issue of Maryknoll magazine. The article provided brief biographical information about 11 Maryknoll Lay Missioners and one Maryknoll sister who were sent last December to serve in Africa, Asia and Latin America. But what drew me in to reading that article were the pictures. Five pages of the small magazine were populated with smiling faces. I wanted to learn more about them, where their feet would take them and what their hands would be asked to do.

• Lauren Vater of Green Bay, Wis., is smiling in her picture. She is being sent to the Bolivian highlands. She previously worked at Covenant House offering at-risk youth counseling and job readiness programs. She hopes to do similar work in Bolivia.
• Ilona and Patrick Helmholz of Benicia, Calif., are pictured side by side, two smiling faces. They will head to Kenya. Patrick hopes to lend to others the financial and management skills he has acquired during an international business career. Ilona’s experience has included initiating breast-feeding groups for mothers in Singapore and tutoring English in Hong Kong. She wants to work with AIDS orphans or street children.
• Claudia Chinn of Miami is leaving a successful career with a fashion company; she is not certain what form her ministry will take in East Timor – except she wants to be a witness of Christ’s love in a land emerging from years of violence.

As I read the brief stories of each person, I was impressed by the vast array of skills and talents, and even more impressed by their smiling eagerness to take on the challenges of uncertain realities. I know they will not always be able to smile, but I admire them for making the commitment, and I pray for them. I hope their joy is contagious.

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The Joyful Noiseletter is a publication — in print and in an electronic version – of the Fellowship of Merry Christians. You may have seen one of their most popular images – the smiling face of the Risen Christ by the sea. The newsletter brings holy humor along with a deep conviction that Christians should be joyful. Now is the time for the “Easter laugh” – a term used by early theologians to describe the ultimate trick played by God on the devil when he overturned death through the resurrection of Jesus. The website includes a quotation from G.K. Chesterton: “Angels can fly because they take themselves lightly. Never forget that the devil fell by force of gravity. He who has the faith has the fun.”

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The Joyful Noiseletter website notes that churches today “are keenly aware that more than a few of their members are hurting because of hard times – from job losses, stock losses, debt, and home foreclosures” — and insists that, “Whatever the cause is, the best way to deal with hard times is with faith and humor. Humor is hope.” What are the needs of your parish or neighborhood? What can you do -- collectively and individually — to help those in need? You can offer your time, your talent, your treasure — and a smile. If we as Christian families are truly to make a difference to those around us, it will take more than a handout or helping another regain his footing. It will take willingness to share the joy of the Lord. Inside and outside of the home, smiling faces need to be applied.

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