Ancient Faith
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Fr. Stephen De Young: Joylessness Is Not Holiness
5:59
What the video says
The speaker states that pain, suffering, shame, and meaninglessness are consequences of sin, not gifts from God. Christian communities often fail to reflect this, falling into either intensifying shame and judgment or offering mere welcome without hope of change.
Repentance and forgiveness are the new realities that should define the Church as a place of healing and transformation. Both non-judgment and a call to repentance can coexist, as can taking sin seriously and experiencing forgiveness.
Joy is a fruit of the Spirit, and its absence signals a deep problem; confession should leave one feeling lighter and reconciled. Non-Christians long for the forgiveness the Church offers because the world provides only cancellation and permanent records, so the focus must remain on salvation in Christ.
Key moments
- Pain, suffering, shame, loneliness, and meaninglessness are facts of sinful human reality, not things God brings when He draws near.
- Christian communities often fail to manifest this; they fall into two poles: exacerbating shame and judgment, or offering welcome without hope or change.
- In the first pole, people feel judged and condemned, and their shame is intensified.
- In the second pole, people feel welcome but find no cure for meaninglessness or shame, only commiseration.
- Repentance and forgiveness are new realities that should distinguish the Christian community as a place of healing and transformation.
- Both non-judgment and a call to repentance are possible together, as are taking sins seriously and experiencing forgiveness.
- Joylessness is not a sign of holiness; St. Paul says joy is a fruit of the Spirit, and its absence indicates something deeply wrong.
- Non-Christians, including atheists, long for the forgiveness offered in Forgiveness Vespers because the world offers only cancellation and permanent records.
Fr. Stephen De Young addresses a distortion in Christian communities where pain, suffering, shame, and meaninglessness are treated as signs of God's presence rather than consequences of sin. He identifies two common failures: communities that intensify shame and judgment, leaving people feeling condemned, and communities that offer welcome without hope of change, leaving people with only commiseration.
The priest argues that repentance and forgiveness are the new realities that should define the Church as a place of healing and transformation. These are not opposed; non-judgment and a call to repentance can coexist, as can taking sin seriously and experiencing forgiveness. Joy is a fruit of the Spirit, and its absence signals something deeply wrong.
Confession should leave a person feeling lighter and reconciled. Fr. Stephen notes that non-Christians, including atheists, long for the forgiveness offered in Forgiveness Vespers because the world provides only cancellation and permanent records. The focus must remain on salvation in Christ.
Main points
- Pain, suffering, shame, and meaninglessness are consequences of sin, not gifts from God.
- Christian communities often fall into intensifying shame or offering welcome without hope of change.
- Repentance and forgiveness together define the Church as a place of healing and transformation.
- Joy is a fruit of the Spirit; its absence indicates a deep problem.
- Non-Christians long for the forgiveness the Church offers because the world offers only cancellation.