Dear brothers and sisters, “This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24).
The 3rd Sunday of Advent is called ‘the Gaudete Sunday,’ the Rejoice Sunday, or Joyful Sunday. The days are joyful because the coming of the savior of the world is imminent and very close at hand.
The Lord is Near
In the first reading (Zeph. 3:14-18), Zephaniah tells the Israelites to rejoice and exult because the judgment against them has been taken away and their enemies destroyed. He made them know that the Lord was in their midst. A warrior to give them victory. In the second reading (Phil. 4:4-7), Paul urges us to rejoice in the Lord. And, to know that the Lord is near. Our savior is Emmanuel, ‘God with us.’ He is the Lord who is near. And he came to bring joy, life, and happiness to us and the world.
The pertinent questions are: Do we experience that joy? Is this promised joy realizable? There is no gainsaying the fact that God works with us to make his promises achievable by us. God needs our cooperation. In the words of St Augustine, he who created us without our help or cooperation will not save us without our cooperation or consent. In light of this, the Gospel of today (Lk. 3:10-18) tells us the attitude we should have in helping to realize the joy that the Lord promised us in its concrete and fullest terms.
What Shall We Do to Realize the Promised Joy?
After preaching, the crowds came to John the Baptist and asked, “What shall we do”? John replied to them about what they should do in their respective works of life. He told the crowd that whoever had two cloaks should share them with the person who had none. To tax collectors, He said, stop collecting more than prescribed. To soldiers, do not practice extortion. Do not falsely accuse anyone. And be satisfied with your wages.
Today, each and every one of us should ask a similar question: What shall we do so that the joy promised by the Lord can be realized in our lives and the world? If John the Baptist were to be in our midst today, he would tell us to expunge anger, hatred, wickedness, and acrimony in our hearts. Many people in the world today have bottled malice and animosity, and they do atrocious and evil stuff. They have no qualms of conscience, and they make people around them weep and cry in agony. John would tell them to eschew rancor and bitterness in words and deeds, be patient with others to understand them, avoid excessive anger, and cultivate self-control. Do not be mean to others but show kindness. Furthermore, John the Baptist would encourage us to be positive with life, put smiles on our neighbors’ faces, and offer words of comfort, consolation, and love, especially to children, kids, teens, and the vulnerable adults of our society.
Without ourselves contributing our own quota, our world will always be chaotic, and the joy and happiness promised to us by the Lord will be a mirage.
Always remember that Jesus loves you!
