This third Sunday in Advent, Guadete Sunday, we are called to rejoice. The title “Guadete” from the Latin word “to rejoice” comes from the entrance antiphon in today’s mass: “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice. Indeed, the Lord is near.” Advent is the season when we prepare and wait for of the Lord Jesus. We wait and prepare for his first coming, as he is born in the humble stable in Bethlehem. We wait and prepare for his second coming, when he will come back in the end times. We are near the end of the season of Advent on this third Sunday. It is thus very appropriate to rejoice as indeed the Lord is near as we approach Christmas day. But this message of rejoicing doesn't point us to some joy or superficial pleasure from the things of this world, but to a joy that's rooted in the way in which we prepare a path for the Lord this Advent season. What does this rejoicing entail? What does it call us to do in our lives of faith?
We might get a good sense of the biblical call to rejoice from Zephaniah in our first reading this morning, as he and the other prophets of ancient Israel often called God's people to rejoice in the darkest moments of their journey. Zephaniah cried out to Israel in the midst of political turmoil and uncertainty in the 7th century BC, before the reforms by King Josiah, before the destruction of the Temple and the Babylonian exile. Zephaniah tells his people that God is in their midst, that God loves them, that God invites them to be renewed in this love. God encourages his people through Zephaniah’s message, telling them not to fear, that he will rejoice over them with gladness.
Paul quite possibly wrote the letter in today's 2nd reading while he was under arrest, certainly not the best of circumstances for him to tell the Philippians to “rejoice in the Lord always” and to “have no anxiety at all.” But Paul goes on to say that he wants them to have “the peace of God that surpasses all understanding.”
What did Zephaniah and Paul intend by telling us to rejoice in the midst of unfavorable and challenging circumstances? Perhaps they're calling us to holiness and wholeness. Perhaps they're referring to the true source of joy and rejoicing that goes beyond our existential human state, beyond any feelings or sufferings we can have in our hearts. Perhaps they believe that joy and rejoicing are essentially a decision we make in our lives, a decision that is grounded in faith. Rejoicing is not ultimately found in the worldly environment we create in our attempts to find happiness, but instead in the presence of God in our lives, which is the presence of love itself. That is where we find joy. That is where we are able to rejoice.
Blessings to all of you on this 3rd Sunday of Advent as we are fast approaching the coming of the Lord.
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