Third Sunday of Advent

Today's Scripture

We are in the midst of Advent, in fact, we have reached the third Sunday in Advent, known in the West as Gaudete Sunday, which is from the Latin for, “Rejoice!” And indeed, our readings today help train our minds to focus on the joy we celebrate. This is particularly emphasized in the first reading from the Book of the Prophet Zephaniah, the responsorial psalm taken from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah, and the second reading from St. Paul’s Letter to the Philippians. The cause of our rejoicing is Jesus, His coming and His presence once He has arrived, where our God will be in our midst (Zephaniah 3:17).  This occurs in today’s Mass, as at every Mass. Such rejoicing, however, also prepares us for the joy of the Christmas season we are about to celebrate in 12 days, where we remember Jesus first coming in the flesh, where God became present to us in our midst ---as He is at every Eucharist.

The Christmas season, for which Advent makes us long and prepares us, is summed up in our first reading: “Shout for joy, O daughter Zion!...The Lord has removed the judgment against you…the King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst, you have no further misfortune to fear” (Zephaniah 3:14-17). This is something to long for. And that’s what Advent is about. The Lord is coming at some unknown point in the future to bring to a close all of history. The Lord is coming in each of our own individual lives to bring our lives to completion. The Lord is coming in our liturgical celebration of the Nativity, in which we celebrate the turning point of the history of the universe, when God the Almighty creator of all that exists came among us as one of us. What better way to celebrate this time of longing and joyful expectation than the celebration of the Mass, where the Lord comes to us in the Eucharist.

Let our celebration of the Eucharist help us grow, like the Old Testament prophets of old, in the longing for and love of the Lord’s coming. This is the reason for our rejoicing. Unlike those prophets of old, we have lived to welcome the Lord at His arrival. Every Mass should remind us of this. Every Christmas reminds us of this. Let us especially keep this in mind this Advent, and so, “Cry out with joy and gladness” (Isaiah 12:6).

- Jeff Morrow