Everybody tells us that Christmas is supposed to be a season of joy. Yet for many of us, the events and expectations of this time

of year—even the lack of sunlight—make joy seem far away from our actual experience. What if joy is different from the sappy feeling that is

peddled by Hallmark movies and advertisers? Are there “terms and conditions” which would fundamentally alter our understanding of joy? In

Paul’s letter to the Philippians, he describes how the early church has a different version of joy than what we often hear about today.