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 Dear
Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Today is Gaudete Sunday!
Gaudete
is the Latin word for “rejoice”. Today, as we are now more than half-way to our
celebration of Christmas, the Church takes this special day to rejoice in
everything that God has done for us, most especially the Incarnation. The Lord
IS that near to us! Today, then, is a day of great rejoicing and joy. We pull
out the good old
Rose
vestments, we light our
Rose
candle, our third on our Advent wreath, and today we celebrate and give thanks.
I
think that today reminds us that joy is supposed to be one of the main
attributes of our Faith. As we get closer and closer to Jesus, the more
joy-filled we should become. Great saints like Francis of Assisi and Teresa of
Lisieux, and even recently Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, have all written
extensively about how happy and peace-filled we should be as Christians, most
especially as Catholic Christians. The saints aren’t calling us to a giddy,
silly joy where we wear fake smiles and are constantly laughing in artificial or
phony happiness. They are calling us to something much deeper, much more
meaningful, than the comical humor that our world offers. This is the kind of
joy that lasts forever. This is the joy that brings deep, deep peace. This is
the joy that St. Paul tells us in Galatians 5:22-23 tells us is a “fruit” of the
Holy Spirit. St. Paul means that if we have the Holy Spirit working in our
life, THEN a result of that work will be great joy. Joy is evidence of the Holy
Spirit.
I
mention this, this weekend, because sometimes we don’t look or sound like joyful
people. Some Catholics, and many Christians in general, don’t exactly seem
joyful or even happy or content. Look at the faces of your brothers and sisters
around you today. Watch them as they come into Mass and as they go out from
Mass. Can you see the joy on their faces? Can you hear the joy in their prayer
or in their singing?
Can you tell
the joy that is in their heart by their enthusiasm when they are at Mass? Maybe
we all need to think and pray a little more about this during the week.
Joy is
contagious! The world around us can be going to Hell, which quite literally it
is, and yet if we have the joy and peace that our Faith offers us on the inside,
we are going to have a happiness and contentment on the outside, that will help
us to keep our perspective and stay on course, no matter what the world or the
devil throws at us. Pray for that joy today. The Holy Spirit wants all of us
to have that real, lasting joy that helps us to see beyond just what our eyes
see. It must have been that kind of joy that was so prominent on the faces of
St. John the Baptist, Mary, and even Joseph, two-thousand years ago, as they
entered the final days of hope and expectation, waiting for their Messiah and
King. As we enter our final days of our Advent season, may true joy be ever
more a part of our lives and our witness.
I’d
like to offer my thanks and gratitude to everyone who helped with yesterday’s
sending out and delivery of the Christmas food and gifts. 165 families will
have a better Christmas because of our efforts. Thanks go to everybody who made
the Advent Angels for our trees, those who put up the trees, those who took
Angels, bought the gifts, and brought them back wrapped and ready to go, those
who sorted and organized the gifts for us, all of those who delivered the food
and gifts to our families, and to all of those who organized such a massive
undertaking on behalf of all of us. Good job guys! We have much to be proud of
from yesterday!
These
are very busy days. There’s a lot going on. Let us keep one another in
prayer. Now more than ever is the time that we need to make sure that we are
stopping in the Adoration Chapel and spending some time with our Lord. When
we’re busy, we need Him and time with Him even more. May all of us keep our
commitments to our scheduled hours! Don’t have a scheduled hour yet? What are
you waiting for? Call Carol Alvarez at 843-2530 to get your own hour, or one to
share with a friend or family member, today.
See,
I didn’t even complain about wearing the
Rose
vestment once. Happy Third Sunday of Advent!
Do something
joyful or rejoicing today with people that you love! Have a great week!
In Christ,
Fr. Kevin
Those who
want the fewest things are closest to the gods.
Socrates
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