My Sisters and Brothers:
The first words of the traditional “entrance antiphon” proclaimed at Mass on the Third Sunday of Advent are from St. Paul’s Letter to the Philippians. He wrote: “Rejoice in the Lord always, I say it again, rejoice” (see Philippians 4:4). In Latin, this translates to “gaudete in Domino semper: iterum dico, gaudete,” and so, based on these words, this Sunday has always been known as “Gaudete Sunday.”
On this day, the traditional liturgical color is rose, hence the unique hue of the Advent wreath’s third candle, as well as the vestments used by the ministers. The words of St. Paul in the antiphon, and the color rose, are meant to emphasize our heightened sense of JOY during these ebbing days of Advent, and as we come closer to the celebration of Christmas. This is completely based on the experience of knowing the presence of the Lord is at hand, and this reality causes us to rejoice! “I say it again, rejoice!”
In today’s first reading, the Prophet Isaiah described the day of the Lord’s coming; he spoke of this same joy when he wrote “in those days the desert and the parched land will exult, the steppe will rejoice and bloom, they will bloom with abundant flowers, and rejoice with joyful song” (see Isaiah 35:1-2a). And on that day of rejoicing, he also prophesied that “the eyes of the blind would be opened, and the ears of the deaf would be cleared . . . then the lame would leap like stags, and the tongues of mutes would sing” (see verses 5-6a).
These joyful words form a kind of prologue to those of Jesus found in today’s passage from the Gospel of St. Matthew. In it, the emissaries of John the Baptist questioned Jesus about whom he truly was. And then echoing the words of Isaiah, Jesus told them: “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them” (see Matthew 11:4-5). We can only imagine how overjoyed they must have been upon learning the anticipated day had come, and that Jesus truly was the long awaited Messiah.
Yet because we know “the rest of the story,” surely our joy is even greater than what was experienced by the followers of John the Baptist. We already know what the Lord has done for us in this life, and what he promised as we now anticipate our own future glory. We know Jesus worked wonders upon the earth, and we know he came to serve humanity and to raise the lowly to high places! We know he sacrificed himself completely for us when he died on the cross; we know he rose from the dead; we know he saved us, and we know he promised us joy forever with the Father in heaven. We also know we share in the mission of Jesus Christ as ambassadors of God’s love on this earth.
Therefore, on this Third Sunday of Advent, and with all of these things in mind, we rejoice again with even more enthusiasm than those disciples of John. But even more specifically, we rejoice today because we anticipate the second coming of Jesus, and we believe the hour of his return is close at hand!
My friends, as we joyfully light the rose-colored candle of our wreath, let’s celebrate with enthusiasm the promised return of Jesus the Lord! And so today, as we anticipate the finale of Advent, and the coming of Christmas, let’s once more recall St. Paul’s words: “Rejoice in the Lord always!” Yes, Jesus is coming, so let’s say it again: “REJOICE!”
Praise God! Friar Timothy
Find me on Facebook by clicking on the following link: http://www.facebook.com/frayteo
No comments:
Post a Comment