Joyful Hope
Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
On this Third Sunday of Advent the Church rejoices as we celebrate Gaudete Sunday. The word “gaudete” comes from the Latin word for rejoice and derives from the Introit of the Mass for this day: “Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say rejoice. Indeed, the Lord is near.” (Phil 4:4-5). Rose colored vestments are worn and the rose colored, third candle of the Advent wreath is lit.
The tradition of rejoicing on the Third Sunday of Advent has its history in a time when Advent was longer and more stringent; more akin to Lent as it relates to fasting and sacrifice. Gaudete Sunday suspended, as it were, the penitential exercises for a while in order to symbolize the joy and gladness in the quickly approaching celebration of Christmas. However, the entire Season of Advent is marked by a joyful anticipation of what is to come: the Lord’s return at the end of days and the soon-to-come celebration of the Incarnation.
The readings today give hope as the Prophet Isaiah speaks of deserts that will bloom and of a God that comes to save us. In the Gospel, Jesus reminds us that he is the one of whom the prophets spoke. In Jesus, “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.”
The Advent Season invites us also to live in joyful hope. The second reading from the Letter of James invites us to be patient as we wait. We are invited to imitate the forbearance of farmers who must wait on the weather to produce the harvest and endure the ups and downs of the challenges of agriculture. The rains come and go, and the farmer has no control over the weather, yet he waits in eager anticipation of a plentiful harvest.
We too, as Christmas approaches, wait in eager anticipation of the celebration of the Word of God becoming flesh, but also the Lord’s return at the end of days. We are encouraged to be ready, for we do not know exactly when God’s “harvest” will be ready. But we eagerly await its bounty.
Sincerely yours in Christ Jesus, the Way, the Truth and the Life,
