Odilon Singbo Presented the Book “God of My Joy” at the Matica hrvatska Book Festival

Within the framework of the Matica hrvatska Book Festival, on 23 May the book by Odilon-Gbènoukpo Singbo, God of My Joy. Ten Antidotes to Gloomy Christianity, published by Kršćanska sadašnjost and the Catholic University of Croatia, was presented.

It is a book of spiritual reflections in which the author, combining personal experiences, priestly practice, biblical wisdom and elements of African culture from which he originates, reflects on the fundamental dimension of the Christian faith – joy.

“Part of my books published so far are of a scientific character, and these others, which are spiritual, came into being outside of me. I never at the start had the desire to write a book on such a topic. Encounters with different persons, whether at the Catholic University of Croatia where I work, in various parishes where I have served or serve, help me to speak those words – some write them down and later send me what I said, and I am almost surprised how I am so wise,” said Fr Odilon Singbo at the beginning of the presentation, responding to the question of the moderator Tamara Džebić Šaljan about how his books come into being.

As for the book God of My Joy, he said that there was no single explicit event that prompted him to write it, but rather encounters – people are those who inspired him. He also reflected on the motif of joy from the book’s title. “The concept of joy, viewed from a theological perspective, is far deeper, weighty when it comes to human fulfilment. My view is that Jesus was joyful even on the cross. Not because he loves suffering, but because of the reason for which he suffers, for our salvation. Parents know this especially well; if your sacrifice bears fruit that can be seen, that your children have succeeded, then every sacrifice, every hardship falls into the background, it is no longer hardship in some negative sense, but we see fruits that fill us with joy. Not cheerfulness, which seems to me transient – we can reflect more deeply on that concept as well, just as on the concepts of loving and liking. A cheerful person can be so after a few glasses of something, but truly joyful… not necessarily,” he said, making the gathered audience smile.

In the conversation, he also reflected on how to preserve that Christian joy in today’s time, marked by wars, suffering and daily negative news. “It seems to me that God of My Joy is in a way a continuation of my previous, more scientific book The Defeat of Humanity. Church Teaching in the Age of Nuclear Weapons. That book can appear very pessimistic, and God of My Joy comes as a response to that – I know that despite all of this there is still a possibility for us to be joyful, fulfilled people. It is true, when we follow the media, we will rarely encounter encouraging content that directs people towards hope, towards faith and the fact that God is nevertheless the Lord of life and history and that He leads our lives despite all these things. Then it seems to me that this book summarises the theological virtues – love, faith and hope – and thus wishes to say that if our perspective is limited to the frameworks of earthly life, then we will probably be discouraged, but if we know that this earthly perspective is permeated by God’s presence and that one day we will be in communion with Him, permeated by God Himself – then we understand that no tragedy here on earth is so tragic, so to speak, that within it we cannot find a reason for joy. Yes, elsewhere people are dying, we are here talking about this, but still these are encouraging encounters, islands of mutual encouragement that we need to create if we want that joy,” said Odilon-Gbènoukpo Singbo.

Responding to the moderator’s question about how much personal experience he incorporated into this book, the author said that the book was partly created on the basis of his personal experience, reflections and living of the Word of God. “There are many fragments from personal life, but also many from encounters with other people who enriched me with their life stories and reflections. It is crucial to mention that I do not emphasise my successes, but my failures, which helped me understand that despite them, they are actually God’s gift for a story that is far wider than the one I could see within limited possibilities,” said Odilon, sharing several anecdotes from his personal life in Africa.

During the conversation, he also reflected on the perception of Christians in Croatia, who sometimes cultivate the “art of lamenting” and the impression that nothing is good in the entire country or family. “That is something that takes away our joy, and we have far more reasons for it,” emphasised Odilon, recounting his experience of his first Midnight Mass in Varaždin, when people, despite the joy of Christmas songs, congratulated each other on Christmas with gloomy faces. “I do not wish to say that joy is an external manifestation, but the way in which I communicate something can show what things are like within me. We should be aware that every day we carry the Gospel, the Good News, and that as Christians we have no reason to be gloomy,” he said, to the delight of the audience, which rewarded him with great applause.

Text and photographs: Kršćanska sadašnjost