What transforms the world: Alexander Schmemann on importance of joy as lifegiving and transfiguring power of Christianity

The crisis of Christianity in the modern world, its inability to rethink and influence new philosophical, cultural trends, according to Fr. Alexander Schmemann is, to a certain extent, the result of the Christians’ departure from the original inspiration of their faith, revealed in joy. Through joy and sustained hope, the Church was able to survive centuries of persecution and transform the pagan Roman empire into a Christian state, lay the foundations for a new vision of the world, touch the minds and hearts of millions.
Schmemann proposes to find joy – the defining tone of the Christian faith – as a leaven that changes the world in the liturgical experience of the Church. The liturgical worship of the Church, as an experience of the Kingdom of God at the Eucharistic table, reveals the value of joy as a gift, given not only to the Christians but offered through the Church to the whole world. The liturgical experience of joy could be a starting point for the renewal of the Church's theology and its effective witnessing to the world in new circumstances.