Today is the 3rd Sunday of Advent, Gaudete Sunday. We are closer to our waiting to commemorate Christmas. Rejoice, Gaudete! We have beautiful and inspiring readings which lead us to be joyful and to be filled with rejoicing as suggested to us by St. Paul. When God is with us, we must be joyful which is an indication of God’s true presence.
The first reading today from the book of Isaiah reminds us that “The spirit of the Lord, God, is upon me because the Lord has anointed me, he has sent me to bring glad tidings to the lowly, to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and release to the prisoners, to announce a year of favor from the Lord and a day of vindication by our God.” This is the proclamation of the prophet Isaiah that Jesus will read in the Nazareth temple near the beginning of His public ministry. It speaks about God’s anointment of Jesus as Christ and His mission.
The second reading from the first letter of St. Paul to the Thessalonians says, “In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise the prophetic utterances.” These are inspiring words that we must be grateful for all things, even for things that hurt and break us. This is somewhat difficult; however, we need to find one good thing in the midst of the bad thing or experience we had before. Then we can joyfully say a prayer, “Thank you, Lord, for my suffering, for without going through it I wouldn’t be what I am today.”
The gospel today from the gospel of St. John continues to enlighten us about John the Baptist. Let us learn to get clearer awareness:
First, we hear in today’s reading explicit statements that Jesus, and not John, is the one sent. “He came for testimony, to testify to the light so that all might believe through him, He was not the light, but he came to testify to the light.”
Second, the gospel, is again about John’s being the “witness” and not the Christ. John did not deny it, but admitted, “I am not the Christ.” We could say that our faith dictates with great feeling of happiness to understand that JESUS IS THE MESSIAH, not John. Jesus was heralded by John to make people realize that Jesus is being missioned or sent to be our Savior.
Third, “the one who is coming after me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to untie.” These humble words of John express who he was and who he was not. There is that temptation that when we don’t know ourselves, about who we are and who we are not, we create our world of make-believe boasting our ego. John was in touch with the reality of who he was.
Therefore, this season of advent is not only anticipating and waiting for the coming of the Lord but coming to our senses that we are totally dependent on God. I certainly believe that God has a purpose for me, but I feel I lack the clarity of understanding my identity, my mission and what God intends for me to do. This thought would not make us happy if we cannot have answers. The joy of Christian living is not what we have right now, but it is connected to the promise of God for us.
Many things get in the way of our really receiving this good news, including our own sense of unworthiness – who are we to receive that kind of love? Let us remember that our primary work is to focus on the joyful witnessing to Christ. We are the poor; we are American dream seekers, who are receiving the glad tidings, and we are the captives being offered liberty. There are reasons for rejoicing because we receive joy and hope from God.
Be courageous in suffering. In hardships, joy will come; after the dark comes the sun. Again, I reiterate in the letter to the Thessalonians we hear, “Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In all circumstances give thanks.” John the Baptist is telling the Pharisees and all of us, “There is one among you whom you do not recognize, the one who is coming after me.” That is Jesus who has wrapped us in a cloak of his gentle love, holding us closer to His heart, giving us healing of our deepest hurts and pains. This is the day to Rejoice!
Come, Lord, Jesus, Come!
Fr. Arlon, osa
