Gaudate!

3^rd Sunday of Advent

Cycle C

Today is the 3^rd Sunday of Advent, Gaudate Sunday, and gaudate means rejoice. It’s time we stop and step out of the whirlwind of parties and shopping and Santa and Christmas carols and simply rejoice in the wonders of our God and all the marvelous things He has done for us.

We have been looking forward to commemorating the first coming of Jesus in Bethlehem, and we have been hearing the message of Jesus to be watchful and prepare for His second coming. Today we meditate on Jesus’ third coming – His entering our lives and the world each and every day.

Rejoice! The Lord is in our midst. Today. That’s the message of our readings today and that’s the message Jesus proclaimed throughout all Judea. Stop looking, you’ve found Him. He is not up in the sky somewhere or anyplace else. The Lord is in our midst. Here.Today. And that is cause for great rejoicing.

I think it is very easy for us today to lose sight of how wonderful we have it. We keep looking for the meaning of Christmas in the sights and sounds and traditions of the season, when all along they’re right here, in our hearts. It doesn’t matter if the secular world has hijacked Christmas. All Christmas is is living as a disciple of Christ, and so for us, Christmas isn’t a day and it isn’t a feeling. It is a way of life.

The Lord is in our midst in such a personal way. How much more intimate can you get than to receive Jesus Christ body, soul and divinity in the Eucharist? You can’t get much closer than that.

We rejoice in the resurrection. Have you ever stopped and considered the ramifications of the resurrection? He came back! When Jesus appeared to his disciples over those 40 days it wasn’t to say, “look at me”, it was to say, “look at you!” The resurrection was Jesus’ present, but it is our future. The glory of the risen Jesus will be our glory as well.

We rejoice in Jesus’ ascension into heaven. We rejoice that he has gone to prepare a place for us, so that where he is we also will be. And His father’s house has many rooms.

We rejoice that He has not left us alone. He has sent the Holy Spirit to us to enlighten us and sustain us. We rejoice that God has chosen to remain such an intimate part of creation, such an intimate part of our lives. We especially rejoice that Jesus Christ continues to live within us and guide us as members of his holy Church. He has chosen to work through us to transform the face of the earth.

We have a God who is so close to us that he rejoices right along with us.

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.

Jesus shared in our suffering and he also shares in our rejoicing.

It is awesome and it is humbling. The gift that causes me the most joy is God’s mercy. That’s really what it’s all about. Jesus came to show us the depth of that mercy. He took all of our sins upon himself on the cross, and reconciled us to the Father. So that we could be with Him in heaven. We don’t deserve such a gift. It is a gift of pure mercy.

I don’t hear people rejoicing much anymore, do you? We live these things every day but rarely acknowledge the gifts we receive. I saw a movie on TV the other night about Dolly Parton’s childhood. About halfway through the thought occurred to me that the actors were all talking openly about God and their relationship with Him. Right there on network television. There was no parsing of words, no political correctness. It was totally natural that those characters would talk so openly about their faith. It fit the story and it fit the characters. It was not preachy or over the top. Their faith was the thread that held the whole story together. It was the foundation of their lives and not only did they recognize it, they celebrated it.

I thought it sad that I don’t hear that kind of conversation much in public today. I hear it in private conversations with my family and some of my friends. I sometime hear it before and after Mass, but not out there. It seems that our faith has become such a personal thing, just between me and God, and we rarely burst out in genuine thanksgiving. Maybe we’re afraid of the reaction we’ll get. If someone gave you a wonderful gift for Christmas, say a car or something big like that, wouldn’t you tell all your friends? Wouldn’t you have them come over to see it and take a drive with you? And wouldn’t your true friends rejoice with you over it and truly be happy for you?

We will be celebrating Christmas soon, and I’m sure life will be crazy for most of us between now and then. What can you do to acknowledge the most important gifts you will be receiving? How can you see the hand of God in every carol, every delicious meal, every child? How can you rejoice in just being alive and acknowledge the gift? How can you accept the mercy that God has extended to you and then offer that mercy to others, especially to those who have hurt you?

Sometimes it’s hard to recognize the truth of who Jesus is and what that means for us. The people of Bethlehem did not stop by the stable to see the newborn baby because of anything special about his appearance or because his mother and father were important people. They came to see this wonderful thing because the heavenly hosts were rejoicing. The shepherds were invited into the stable. They were called to see the wondrous gift God had just given them.

The angels weren’t rejoicing for Jesus, they were rejoicing for us. God’s plan for the salvation of mankind was being put into motion, and they were rejoicing in expectation of our joy.

People respond to rejoicing. It is contagious. People want to know what the fuss is all about and they naturally join in when they can. People may not want to hear you preach, but they will be drawn to your rejoicing. Who can you invite into the stable this week? Who will want to know what you are fussing about? Who will want to join in your rejoicing? And once they do, what will you tell them?