Dear Friends,

The tone of our celebration for the 3rd Sunday of Advent, also known as Gaudete, is one of rejoicing. The Entrance Antiphon resounds: "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice. Indeed, the Lord is near." The first reading this Sunday presents the Prophet exalting the people to rejoice and to be glad for their God is coming to them. On that day, “The eyes of the blind shall be opened, the ears of the deaf unsealed, then the lame shall leap like a deer and the tongues of the dumb sing for joy.”

Our world is burdened with war and destruction and displacement; lives have been assaulted, and hopes have been dashed. We are probably skeptical and unable to rejoice because of what is happening to us, near us, and/or to the people we love dearly. Most of us are spiritually lame, deaf, and dumb because of the many happenings and events in our lives.

We also share the pains of our brothers and sisters with whom we share the faith: The Christian persecutions in Myanmar, Gaza and Israel, Ukraine, Russia, Sudan, and Nigeria are not worth rejoicing for. We cannot rejoice when our hearts are full of arrogance stemming from greed and indifference to one another. Our world urgently needs truth and accountability.

Because Advent means, Coming/Arrival of the Lord, we do not rejoice primarily because we are anticipating the anniversary of Jesus' birth at Christmas, but we do so because God's promise is fulfilled in Jesus. Mathew the evangelist gives Jesus the title Emmanuel, God-with-us, and as God with us, Jesus embodies the truth, the reliability, the faithfulness of God. Nothing compares to having implicit faith and confidence in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Christ, therefore, is the reason for us to rejoice. He invites us to allow God's word to transform our minds and hearts so has to grow in a proper attitude by making every effort to amend our own lives each year in preparation for His coming. Jesus is our Savior, and He is the one who reconciles us with God and with one another. He will raise us with him to eternal life.

As God is coming to us, we are called to journey towards God. We are called to a life of fidelity in the very circumstances of our own lives. Those who have more than they need should share with those who have less; those whose relationship is broken need to reconcile. Parents must cherish their children, and spouses are to be faithful to each other. Neighbors are to live in peace.

We need to help Jesus heal the blind, the lame, the deaf, and the mute today. Jesus desires to open our blind eyes and to loosen our tongues so that He may see and speak to the spiritually hungry through us. Jesus asks us for our hearts in order to touch the lives of people in our day through us. I love the words of the Prophet Isaiah,

"Strengthen the weak hands,
and make firm the feeble knees.
Say to those who have an anxious heart,
‘Be strong; fear not!
Behold, your God will come with vengeance,
with the recompense of God.
He will come and save you."
— Isaiah 35:3-4

Jesus is the Savior of the world, and he continues to nourish us in his Church with His own Body and Blood in Holy Communion, in other Sacraments, and with the word of God through the Holy Bible. Today, be kind to at least one person, either in what you say or do to him/her, so that the words "Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice" will have meaning.

Happy Gaudete Sunday. Jesus, I trust in you!

BACK TO LIST