Story by Joe Pisani
Jesus wept. But did Jesus smile?
We know Jesus wept because the Bible tells us so, but there are no accounts of Jesus smiling. However, I’m convinced he smiled. Someone whose heart is filled with infinite love has to smile because he can’t keep all that love inside.
Let me share some of the occasions when I believe Jesus smiled even though they may not have been recorded by the Gospel writers.
Was there a more appropriate time for smiling than Easter morning? Do you remember the account in the Gospel of John 20:11-17, when Mary Magdalene goes to the tomb and finds it empty. Jesus appears and says, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” She thought he was the gardener and said to him, “Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him.” And Jesus responded, “Mary.” Surely, there was a tender smile in that precious moment.
Shortly after, in the same chapter, Jesus appeared to the Apostles, who were frightened and hiding in the locked room: “On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’ When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you.’” That was another time I’m sure he smiled.
St. Teresa of Calcutta once said, “Peace begins with a smile. Smile five times a day at someone you don’t really want to smile at; do it for peace. Let us radiate the peace of God and so light his light and extinguish in the world and in the hearts of all men all hatred and love for power.
Although it is not recorded in any Gospel, Servant of God Fulton Sheen often said the first person Jesus appeared to after his resurrection was his mother. What a joyous occasion that must have been. Imagine the encounter between Jesus and Our Lady, three days after his Passion and death on the cross. You know they were smiling.
Jesus loved to be surrounded by children, and he certainly smiled a lot. How could he not smile amid that laughter and love? And let’s not forget the wedding feast at Cana. When Jesus changed water into wine — to please his mother — and saved the couple from serious embarrassment, he must have smiled. After all, it was a wedding. Who doesn’t smile at a wedding?
Although Jesus has never been quoted as saying, “Smile, God loves you,” he was pretty explicit about frowning. In the Sermon on the Mount, he said, “When you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites.” (Matthew 6:16)
In the Old Testament, the word “smile” is rarely used, although biblical scholars suggest the Hebrew word for “shining” is synonymous with smiling. When you read about God’s face shining, particularly in the Psalms, that means God is smiling at you. For example, Psalm 80 says, “O Lord God of hosts, restore us; cause your face to shine upon us and we will be saved.”
Do you want to share the Good News? Then, smile. Smiling is contagious. When you smile at someone, they smile in return.
As we evangelize, we have to be prepared for encounters with non-believers and lax believers. All the apologetics in the world won’t help if we’re not filled with joy. Smile often because a dour face is hardly an appealing invitation to follow Jesus.
Three out of four people believe their day is brightened when someone smiles at them. A study in Great Britain showed that 28 percent of the 2000 respondents say a smile is better than a gift, and 26 percent say it beats receiving praise at work.
Sixty percent said having someone smile at them increases their confidence, while 52 percent said it makes them happier. Furthermore, a smile ignites an emotional chain reaction, inspiring people to spread good will to others.
Mother Teresa recognized the importance of smiling in a troubled world of suffering and pain.
“Smile at each other,” she said. “Smile at your wife, smile at your husband, smile at your children, smile at each other — it doesn’t matter who it is — and that will help you to grow in greater love for each other.”
This unassuming saint of Calcutta, who worked with the sick and the dying, also said, “We shall never know all the good that a simple smile can do” and “Every time you smile at someone it is an action of love. A gift to that person, a beautiful thing.”
“Let us always meet each other with a smile, for the smile is the beginning of love,” she said. “Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God’s kindness: kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile.”
Jesus calls us to love … and he calls us to smile. When you’re filled with love, you can’t help but smile.
It’s Easter, the Lord is risen. So smile.