Homily Advent (C) 3rd (Gaudete) Sunday - Rejoice Always

Gaudete Sunday – Rejoice Always?

Core Message:

Core Message goes here

I. Introduction

Subtitle

My intro goes here

II. Body

Subtitle

Point 1 goes here

III. Conclusion

Subtitle

My conclusion goes here

Readings for the 3rd Sunday of Advent (C):

Sunday, December 13, 2015 | Advent

Third Sunday of Advent

Year C | Roman Missal

First Reading Zephaniah 3:14–18a

Response Isaiah 12:6

Psalm Isaiah 12:2–6

Second Reading Philippians 4:4–7

Gospel Acclamation Isaiah 61:1 (cited in Luke 4:18)

Gospel Luke 3:10–18

Index of Readings

First Reading

Zephaniah 3:14–18a

14 Shout for joy, daughter Zion!

sing joyfully, Israel!

Be glad and exult with all your heart,

daughter Jerusalem!

15 The Lord has removed the judgment against you,

he has turned away your enemies;

The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst,

you have no further misfortune to fear.

16 On that day, it shall be said to Jerusalem:

Do not fear, Zion,

do not be discouraged!

17 The Lord, your God, is in your midst,

a mighty savior,

Who will rejoice over you with gladness,

and renew you in his love,

Who will sing joyfully because of you,

18 as on festival days.

I will remove disaster from among you,

so that no one may recount your disgrace.

Response

Isaiah 12:6

6 Shout with exultation, City of Zion,

for great in your midst

is the Holy One of Israel!

Psalm

Isaiah 12:2–6

2 God indeed is my salvation;

I am confident and unafraid.

For the Lord is my strength and my might,

and he has been my salvation.

3 With joy you will draw water

from the fountains of salvation,

4 And you will say on that day:

give thanks to the Lord, acclaim his name;

Among the nations make known his deeds,

proclaim how exalted is his name.

5 Sing praise to the Lord for he has done glorious things;

let this be known throughout all the earth.

6 Shout with exultation, City of Zion,

for great in your midst

is the Holy One of Israel!

Second Reading

Philippians 4:4–7

4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice! 5 Your kindness should be known to all. The Lord is near. 6 Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. 7 Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Gospel Acclamation

(cited in Luke 4:18)

Isaiah 61:1

1 The spirit of the Lord God is upon me,

because the Lord has anointed me;

He has sent me to bring good news to the afflicted,

to bind up the brokenhearted,

To proclaim liberty to the captives,

release to the prisoners,

Gospel

Luke 3:10–18

10 And the crowds asked him, “What then should we do?” 11 He said to them in reply, “Whoever has two tunics should share with the person who has none. And whoever has food should do likewise.” 12 Even tax collectors came to be baptized and they said to him, “Teacher, what should we do?” 13 He answered them, “Stop collecting more than what is prescribed.” 14 Soldiers also asked him, “And what is it that we should do?” He told them, “Do not practice extortion, do not falsely accuse anyone, and be satisfied with your wages.”

15 Now the people were filled with expectation, and all were asking in their hearts whether John might be the Messiah. 16 John answered them all, saying, “I am baptizing you with water, but one mightier than I is coming. I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals. He will baptize you with the holy Spirit and fire. 17 His winnowing fan is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.” 18 Exhorting them in many other ways, he preached good news to the people.

Liturgy

THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT

In this Mass the color violet or rose is used.

Entrance Antiphon [Phil 4:4–5]

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice.

Indeed, the Lord is near.

The Gloria in excelsis (Glory to God in the highest) is not said.

Collect

O God, who see how your people

faithfully await the feast of the Lord’s Nativity,

enable us, we pray,

to attain the joys of so great a salvation

and to celebrate them always

with solemn worship and glad rejoicing.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, for ever and ever.

The Creed is said.

Prayer over the Offerings

May the sacrifice of our worship, Lord, we pray,

be offered to you unceasingly,

to complete what was begun in sacred mystery

and powerfully accomplish for us your saving work.

Through Christ our Lord.

Preface II of Advent, pp. 534–537.

It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation,

always and everywhere to give you thanks,

Lord, holy Father, almighty and eternal God,

through Christ our Lord.

For all the oracles of the prophets foretold him,

the Virgin Mother longed for him

with love beyond all telling,

John the Baptist sang of his coming

and proclaimed his presence when he came.

It is by his gift that already we rejoice

at the mystery of his Nativity,

so that he may find us watchful in prayer

and exultant in his praise.

And so, with Angels and Archangels,

with Thrones and Dominions,

and with all the hosts and Powers of heaven,

we sing the hymn of your glory,

as without end we acclaim:

Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts …

Communion Antiphon [Cf. Is 35:4]

Say to the faint of heart: Be strong and do not fear.

Behold, our God will come, and he will save us.

Prayer after Communion

We implore your mercy, Lord,

that this divine sustenance may cleanse us of our faults

and prepare us for the coming feasts.

Through Christ our Lord.

Question and Answer

Subtitle

What is a question I have?

Answer or Notes go here

Homily Help

The people in today's Gospel are "filled with expectation." They believe John the Baptist might be the Messiah they've been waiting for. Three times we hear their question: "What then should we do?"

The Messiah's coming requires every man and woman to choose - to "repent" or not. That's John's message and it will be Jesus' too (see Luke 3:3; 5:32; 24:47). "Repentance" translates a Greek word, metanoia (literally, "change of mind"). In the Scriptures, repentance is presented as a two-fold "turning" - away from sin (see Ezekiel 3:19; 18:30) and toward God (see Sirach 17:20-21; Hosea 6:1).

This "turning" is more than attitude adjustment. It means a radical life-change. It requires "good fruits as evidence of your repentance" (see Luke 3:8). That's why John tells the crowds, soldiers and tax collectors they must prove their faith through works of charity, honesty and social justice.

In today's Liturgy, each of us is being called to stand in that crowd and hear the "good news" of John's call to repentance. We should examine our lives, ask from our hearts as they did: "What should we do?" Our repentance should spring, not from our fear of coming wrath (see Luke 3:7-9), but from a joyful sense of the nearness of our saving God. This theme resounds through today's readings: "Rejoice!...The Lord is near. Have no anxiety at all," we hear in today's Epistle. In today's Responsorial, we hear again the call to be joyful, unafraid at the Lord's coming among us. In today's First Reading, we hear echoes of the angel's Annunciation to Mary. The prophet's words are very close to the angel's greeting (compare Luke 1:28-31). Mary is the Daughter Zion - the favored one of God, told not to fear but to rejoice that the Lord is with her, "a mighty Savior."

She is the cause of our joy. For in her draws near the Messiah, as John had promised: "One mightier than I is coming."

Notes

As you probably know today is Gaudete Sunday. In case you forgot, the priest wears these beautiful rose vestments to remind you. I must admit there is no a whole lot of pink in my wardrobe, but this festive color does remind us all of the joy that our Savior’s birth is soon and very soon! Like the color of the sky just before the break of dawn, these vestments, like the third candle in the advent wreath, remind us that our glorious God is about to appear in the flesh. And so…Gaudete! Rejoice!

In fact, there are several reasons to rejoice today. First of all, I am rejoicing to be back with my friends at St Charles, my home away from Rome. And I’m happy to express my gratitude to Fr Marc for inviting me back to celebrate this Eucharist with my extended family, who have brought me so much joy.

And another cause of our joy is that this family is alive and growing. Today it receives a new son, we are receive a new brother in Christ. Today, Johnny will washed in the saving blood of Christ, and will be baptized into the life of the Trinity. Today, the Body of Christ has a new member. St Charles receives a an immaculate child. Johnny today, you are our glory, and for this Gaudemus, we rejoice!

Yes, the Catholic Church in Monaco is alive, and the Catholic Church around the world is alive. Today the Holy Father opens the Holy Door at St John Lateran for the Jubilee Year of Mercy, and pilgrims not only in Rome, but in every diocese around the world, where holy doors have been consecrated for the occasion, will be flooding into God’s house in a gesture of faith and home-coming. Today at 4 pm, we will open our Holy Door in the Chapelle de la Misericorde. Thousands of inititiaves to make God’s mercy felt in a world that is literally dying for mercy have arisen in the wake of the Pope’s call for a Jubilee year of mercy, 50 years after the Second Vatican Council. The world is and will be fixated on the Mercy, and for this, I for one Gaudeo, I rejoice!

Forgive me if I share a somewhat personal joy, but in fact it has everything to do with you too. Yesterday, in that same Basilica in Rome, 44 of my brothers were ordained priests of Christ, several of whom were seminarians by my side during my long years of formation. But these 44 new priests are not just for me. They are for all of you. 44 more Masses being celebrated in the world. That means 44 men calling down the mercy of God. And like the sacrament that Johnny receives today, their priesthood can never be wiped away. What a gift! What a mystery! What a gaudium!

And one last joy. 3 years ago on this liturgical feast, Gaudete Sunday, I celebrated my first Mass. Thank you Jesus for 3 joy-filled years in your service.

But the fact is we could go on forever with reasons to rejoice. Literally. St Paul knew that. That’s why he said Rejoice Always!

Is that possible? Will if our idea of joy is “feeling groovy” or singing the “happy song” –if joy is nothing but a sentiment, an emotion, a feeling—than no, it’s not possible. Joy can be a passion—something you suffer, something that happens to you…thus the name, passion. But Christian joy is deeper than that. It’s a habit. It’s a fruit of the Holy Spirit. It abides with you. This joy is unshakable, unbreakable, undefeatable.

And where does it come from. Above all in knowing that the Lord is at hand. That he is in our midst. And as the prophet Zephaniah says in the First Reading, that our God rejoices in us. He delights in you and me. He longs for us to enter into his joy. This is heaven you know, Good and faithful servant, enter into my joy.

But we don’t have to wait for death to know true joy. We have a foretaste here and now. And if you’re like me, you’re longing to taste more of it. That’s why we do crazy things, like the crowds, like the soldiers in the Gospel. They went out into the desert to hear a man who would give them the words of God, to receive a grace for their lives in the waters of baptism.

And you got up and gave your Sunday to come to St Charles. Is it not because you believe that God is the source of all blessing? I believe he wants to bless all of us with his joy.

I think JB believed that. That’s why he wasn’t afraid to challenge those people. He truly wanted them to know the fullness of God’s joy. And so when, one after another, they asked him, What must we do? What must we do? What must we do? He told them! He helped them journey toward Jesus.

So as we journey toward Jesus this Advent let’s look to these 3 words of advice the Predecessor gave.

This first counsel is positive. The two that follow will speak of what not to do. JB speaks of giving from your surplus. If you have two tunics, give one away. Extra food, share it with someone who is hungry. Later on in the Gospel, Jesus will go even further than JB, when he commends the widow who gave all she had to live on.

JB's first counsel speaks to our giving of material things. His second counsel speaks to how we ought receive them. Sparingly is the answer in a word. Within the limits of what is permitted by law and conscience. Honesty and justice in human affairs are required also from a spiritual perspective. How can one give an invisible God his due (the virtue of religio) when he is cheating the brother at his side of his due? How can one be saintly, when he can’t even be sincere?

Fr Jaroslav, Fr Raymond Macias,

Never ask money. Let me think about it.

Liana always wants her way. Lone Ranger. Not team builder. Lots of contacts.

La Vierge Missionaire de la Famille. Works.

Report each time to Fr Paul Hubert.

Don’t double visits. Tell Fr Paul who I’ll see. And when