The Joy of Christmas"

Today's Mass Readings

Joy! Joy resounds throughout today’s scripture readings! Jesus, the savior, is to be born! The gospel passage, a familiar story, is Mary’s visit to her cousin Elizabeth. Both women are pregnant, and John the Baptist leaps for joy in Elizabeth’s womb in response to the presence of Jesus. The Zephaniah passage, meanwhile, is paired with this gospel reading because it also describes joy. Christians read this passage as referring to Jesus: “The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a mighty savior; He will rejoice over you with gladness, and renew you in his love, He will sing joyfully because of you, as one sings at festivals.” Zephaniah hence commands: “Shout for joy, O daughter Zion! Sing joyfully, O Israel! Be glad and exult with all your heart, O daughter Jerusalem!” The people who have lived in darkness and longed for a savior, now have him, Jesus the Messiah! This is the love our God has for us! He comes in our very midst as our savior, to redeem us and to rejoice over us, to bring us back into his family and kingdom. In these last days before Christmas, let us rejoice! Our God has not and does not abandon us, but comes to us as the infant Jesus. When Mary brings him to Elizabeth, John the Baptist leaps for joy! We also should strive to respond to God’s presence in our life with this joy! We are not lost…we are loved, deeply loved, rejoiced over in spite of our sins.

In this time when “joy” seems to be something that can be purchased and packaged in the form of a Christmas present, let us turn instead to the authentic joy that comes from the greatest gift of all: Jesus’ coming to earth as a baby who will grow up to live, die, and rise for all of his people.