This Sunday is known in the Catholic liturgical calendar as Guadete Sunday, from the Latin word to rejoice, as we are filled with joy and we rejoice that the celebration of our Savior’s birth will soon be here.
The prophet Isaiah speaks of great joy that will come from the realization that God is in our midst, that he is there to restore us and save us. Isaiah is speaking to a people in exile, who hope to return to Israel through the help of God. According to Isaiah, God’s saving power will be recognized in all of creation, as the desert and parched land will bloom with joy and burst into joyful song. Isaiah challenges those who live in fear and who feel abandoned to be strong and to not be afraid, that God is here to save us. As the people heard this message of joy as they anticipated coming back from exile, we hear this message in the midst of our reality as well, as we prepare for the coming of the Lord. We are called to have faith in Christ’s ability to restore and renew humanity.
Violet is the official liturgical color of Advent, alluding to the penitential tone of the season. Like Lent, Advent is a time for us to repent from our sins, to receive absolution from God, and to be in the state of grace for Christmas. On Guadete Sunday, in the midst of Advent, we have rose as our liturgical color, alluding to the upcoming joyful celebration of our savior’s nativity that will soon be here. We joyfully await Jesus’ coming at Christmas, just as we joyfully await his coming in the end times.
While this is Guadete Sunday and the prophet Isaiah speaks of rejoicing, the Gospel message from John the Baptist has a different tone. Last Sunday, in the 3rd Chapter of Matthew’s Gospel, John the Baptist was calling the people to repent, paving the way for Jesus’ coming as the Messiah, saying that one mightier than he would be coming, baptizing not with water, but with the Holy Spirit and with fire. But then, the people see Jesus starting his public ministry and his proclamation of God’s kingdom, healing the sick and befriending sinners and outcasts. He did not meet the expectations many had of the coming Messiah. So, in Matthew’s Gospel today, John is sitting in prison. He sends word to Jesus: Are you the Messiah, the one we are awaiting, or do we wait for someone else? Jesus does not give a yes or no answer, but he tells them to look at what they see: people being healed and being made whole and the Good News being proclaimed to the poor.
Do we see the miracles that Jesus is enacting in our own day? Are we open to the awesome wonder and power of God’s kingdom? Or are we so entrenched in our own perspective and our own little corner of the world that we are not open to all our faith can be?
In the Gospel, tells John’s disciples that if they open their eyes and judge with their hearts, they will be able to see and witness who Jesus really is. Words are important. But what we see is important too. And then it does not end with what we see. We are called to act.
This Saturday morning, there was a gathering of the deacons and the deacon candidates and their wives in Winona. The deacons gather every year during Advent, and I usually meet with them as the vicar general of the Diocese. I was asked to speak to them, and was asked what topic I wanted to address with them at this gathering. I decided to speak to them about homilies and about writing the prayers of the faithful, speaking about those topics from my perspective and to talk about the importance of those elements in the mass that are the responsibility of the deacon or the priest. Then I wanted to speak to them about the importance of our ministry in the community. One of the things it says about deacons in the Catechism, is that they share in Christ’s mission and grace in a special way, not owing in assisting the bishop and priests in the divine mysteries of the sacraments, but also in dedicating themselves to various ministries of charity out in the community (CCC 1570). The Catechism states that it is appropriate and useful for the ministry of the deacons in the Church liturgical and pastoral life and in its social and charitable works be strengthened by the grace of their ordination (CCC 1571).
I bring up my talk to the deacons because it is not just the priests and deacons called to action, to participate in liturgical and charitable works of the Church, but all of us according to our state, whether lay or deacon, have our proper role in these works. I am grateful for all the ways so many people in our parish participate in these ministries and charitable works in the Church and in the community. We call those who not yet involved in these actions to pray and discern and see where God is calling you. This is not just a call to us during Advent, but it is a call to us each day on our road of discipleship.
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