Homilies | Father Nathan

Father Nathan | Homily

3rd Sunday Of Advent

Gaudete Sunday or “Rejoicing Sunday”

Introduction:

In today’s gospel we see Jesus is at work – enabling the blind to see, the deaf to hear, and the lame to walk.

It is a marvelous display of compassion for suffering humanity.

In the Eucharist we encounter the same compassionate Jesus. Let us not be afraid to let him see our wounds and handicaps that he would heal us. The third Sunday of advent is also called Gaudete Sunday or “Rejoicing Sunday.”

So, to express our joy in the coming of Jesus as our Savior into our hearts and lives, we light the rose candle in the Advent wreath, and the priest may wear rose vestments.

Let us rejoice in the Lord.

Scripture lessons summarized:

In Today’s first reading (Is 35:1-6a, 10) the prophet Isaiah, uses the image of the desert, made fertile by rain to portray the confident hope that God would restore his people crushed by misfortune.

Their most crippling disabilities – blindness, deafness, and lameness – will be relieved when God sends salvation to his people. He encourages the exiled Jews in Babylon to rejoice because their God is going to liberate them from slavery and lead them safely to their homeland.

The second reading (James 5: 7-10)  St. James the Apostle urges us to be patient with one another and patient regarding the Lords final coming.  He encourages the early Christians to rejoice and wait with patience for the imminent second coming of Jesus.

Today’s Gospel (Mt 11:2-11)

Jesus encourages John the Baptist while in prison to rejoice by casting away his wrong expectations about the Messiah and simply accepting Jesus’ healing and preaching ministry as the fulfillment of the Messianic prophecy of Isaiah. 

In the second part of today’s Gospel, Matthew presents Jesus, the true Messiah, paying the highest compliments to John the Baptist as his herald and the last of the prophets, and giving special credit to the courage of John’s prophetic convictions, asking his listeners to rejoice in the greatness of his herald.

All the three readings of today’s mass have comforting words.

In the first reading Isaiah says

“Courage, do not be afraid”

In the second reading St. James says

“Be patient! Do not lose heart”

In the gospel we have the lovely words of Jesus to his cousin john

“Happy the person who doesn’t lose the faith.

John’s situation was a grim one. He was locked up in a dark dungeon with the threat of death hanging over him. His faith was being severely tested. He needed reassurance and comforting, no doubt Jesus’s words were a source of comfort and strength to John.

Those comforting words of Jesus are addressed to us now. 

We need to drink them in because at times we too can find ourselves in dark situations. We might be going along nicely but then a storm suddenly hits us; serious illness, loss of someone – family or friend…. these kinds of things shatter our faith in the right order of things and even in God.

At times like these may we hear the words of Isiah “take courage! Do not be afraid”

Life Messages:

1) We need to learn how to survive a Faith crisis: If John the Baptist, even after having had a direct encounter with Jesus, the Messiah, had his doubts about Jesus and his teachings, we, too, can have our crises of Faith.   

On such occasions, let us remember the truth that all our Christian dogmas are based on our trusting Faith in the Divinity of Jesus who taught them, and on his Divine authority which he gave to his Church to teach what he taught.

Hence, it is up to us to lean our Faith in depth and so to remove our doubts.

 2) “Go and tell others what you hear and see.”   We rejoice at the thought that Jesus is going to be reborn in our lives, deepening in us his gifts of love, mercy, forgiveness, and the spirit of humble and sacrificial service during this Christmas season.

Hence, let us joyfully share God’s bountiful grace, forgiveness, and mercy with others.   What Jesus commanded John’s disciples, he commands us as well: 

“Go and tell others what you hear and see.”

This means that we have to share with others our experience of the rebirth of Jesus within us.

3) Let us hold on to our faith. Faith is a fragile thing. We mustn’t be surprised when doubts arise within us.

God will understand our doubts in a world like this. But blessed are we if we do not lose our faith in Jesus.

And twice blessed are we if, like Jesus, we are able to show forth our faith in deeds of love and mercy.

Amen…

Have a Blessed Week,

Fr. Nathan