Joy as Resistance | Monday Invocation
“Even when both our personal worlds and the world at large seem very dark, we can seek and fan into flames little sparks of joy.”
Lin Melone
Resistance is not only something that we do on a public scale. It’s also the values that shape how we show up every day and what we refuse to accept as “normal,” how we care for one another, and how we stay grounded when the world feels heavy. So what counts as resistance in everyday life? And how can it be rooted in our faith?
This month, we are exploring various practices of resistance that can help shape the kind of change that we want to see in the world. Continuing with the topic of joy, especially in a time when sometimes it seems difficult to feel joyful. Today, QCF EDI Council Member, Lin Melone, continues this series with Joy as Resistance.
“This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalms 118:24)
“Rejoice in the Lord always!” (Philippians 4:4)
Scripture often calls us to rejoice – but with the world such a mess, how can we? Doesn’t resistance to evil demand sorrow or righteous anger, not joy?
I believe that there are two kinds of joy. The first we find in the verbs “rejoice” and “enjoy,” a kind of joy that’s a discipline or practice, like gratitude or mindfulness. This can be practiced regardless of our circumstances, and in fact, these verses were probably written to people facing exile in one case and persecution in the other. Even when both our personal worlds and the world at large seem very dark, we can seek and fan into flames little sparks of joy. Powers like empire and White Christian Nationalism want from us a passivity born of despair, but practicing joy fuels our resistance. Drag balls and brunches and Pride marches have long been queer communities’ versions of this practice.
The other kind of joy surprises us, sweeps over us in unexpected ways at unlikely times. This, too, happens despite circumstances – it’s fruit of the Spirit, (Galatians 5:22) who blows where She wills. Perhaps the practice of joy prepares us to notice and receive the gift of joy, and both kinds can be a part of the work of resistance.
A group singing outside of an establishment.
Recently I’ve been practicing joy with a movement called Singing Resistance. Starting with a group singing “It’s OK to Change Your Mind” to ICE agents at hotels in Minneapolis, the movement has spread across the country. Although its organizers cite the Serbian singing resistance of the late 1990s as their direct inspiration, people of faith have been using music to fight injustice since Paul and Silas sang down their jail doors in Philippi. Here in San Francisco, members of our community have sung in protests at government buildings, Target, and Home Depot through our local Mennonite Action chapter. We sing with anger, sorrow, hope, and encouragement, but the singing together itself is a joy.
And the Spirit’s unexpected wind of joy blows – in the sight of children singing along, or someone in an inflatable frog costume dancing, or the softening body language and face of a store manager as they listen and don’t kick us out of their store right away. If these protests don’t seem to do much toward practically stopping the evils they’re opposing (many more types of action are necessary to build an effective movement), they do bind us together and nourish our beloved community of resistance.
