Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption by
Deacon Jerry Franzen
Zephaniah 3:14-18a Philippians 4:4-7 Luke
3:10-18
"Praised Be Jesus Christ. Good Morning."
Thursday evening I attended a
Christmas band and choral concert
at Scott High School in Taylor Mill.
The performers were a mixture
of students
from Woodland Middle
School and Scott High School.
Two of my grandchildren were
performing in the band portion.
The second to last selection
was entitled “Adventum”,
an instrumental composition by Jared Barnes.
That name, “Adventum” piqued
my interest;
it sounded like a Latin term connected to Advent.
Before beginning that selection, the
conductor mentioned
that it would eventually be a bit loud; that made me
wonder.
It started softly with the
melody of “O Come, O Come Emmanuel”
played on flutes and woodwinds;
the volume
grew as it transitioned
into the Carol of the Bells played by
the whole band
with
lots of percussion,
It was loud by the end.
I thought: ”What a metaphor
for Advent?” –
a somber beginning of asking for Christ to come
leading to
the bell-ringing joy of His arrival.
Today is Gaudete Sunday – Gaudete,
a Latin word for “Rejoice!
Rejoice, the day of
Christ Jesus is coming.”
Why are we rejoicing, when
for the last two Sundays
we have heard that Advent is not just about the birth of
Jesus,
but more so also
about the final Day of Judgement
when he will come as Christ the King?
Rejoice about the end of the
world? Come now.
The simple answer is that we
are to rejoice that
we are past the halfway point of this season of preparation.
I
In the first reading, the
prophet Zephaniah was telling the Israelites
that
even though God had let them suffer in exile
because of their unfaithfulness,
God had removed his judgement against them.
Zephaniah also reminded the
Israelites that God was with them
to renew them in his
love.
They were to sing joyfully,
as one sings at festivals.
For us the same is true.
We may feel exiled from God
by our sins.
To shout with joy is
difficult in times of struggle with our sinfulness;
it goes against our feelings and our perceptions.
We cannot forget that God is
with us and comes to us every day
in many ways, but especially in the Eucharist.
We are not stuck in the bog
of sinfulness.
Every time we receive the
Sacrament of Reconciliation,
we come away with our sins forgiven,
ready for the end of our life to join God in
heaven.
Jesus came to earth to
accomplish that forgiveness.
Let us Rejoice and sing
joyfully.
II
This is all enhanced in the
second reading.
St. Paul tells us to rejoice in the Lord
always,
not every now and then, but always.
How can we rejoice always
unless we are ready always?
Regular reception of the
Sacrament of Reconciliation
will do the trick.
It removes the anxiety of where
will I be at the final judgement,
on the left or the right, with the goats or the sheep,
wheat in the
barn or chaff to be burned, in heaven or hell?
We can aim to be free from
serious sin at our death,
to be all set to be with God for eternity
by regular
reception of the Sacrament.
That is the Peace of Christ.
Jesus came to earth to bring
us that Peace, the Peace of Christmas.
Let us rejoice and sing
joyfully
III
We heard from Zephaniah, who
spoke to the Israelites
six hundred years before the birth of Christ.
He spoke of God’s presence
within them and
his forgiveness for their sinfulness.
God was present within us in
human form as His Son, Jesus,
and remains with us and within us in the Eucharist.
We also heard from St. Paul
years after Jesus left this earth.
The Philippians were told to
not have anxiety,
to make their requests to God
in prayer,
petition and thanksgiving.
Jesus came to bring the
peace of God,
which surpasses all understanding.
Let us rejoice and sing
joyfully.
And then St. Luke, also years
after Jesus left this earth,
gave us words about what happened among the people
shortly
before the beginning of Christ’s ministry.
They were expecting the
Messiah,
whom they thought would free them from Roman oppression.
John told them to prepare by
acts of love, sharing with others,
treating others justly and rightly with
respect.
He said that one mightier
than he would come,
the long-awaited Messiah.
Then he told them something
that they would not understand
until the day of Pentecost
about three
years in the future for them.
They would be baptized with
the Holy Spirit.
They would rejoice in the
Lord’s presence among them
and they would follow the Spirit
in preaching
God’s love and His plan for us.
Let us rejoice and sing
joyfully
In this season of Advent, we
can get off focus and
miss the point of the season.
We get so overwhelmed with
all of the parties,
gifts to buy and wrap, cards to address and send,
that we may
miss the person of Christmas.
We might ask ourselves a few
questions:
Is there joy in our hearts,
because this is the celebration
of the remembrance of the birth of the Son of God,
who has provided for us the way back to the
Father?
Are we seeking, like the
people in today’s readings,
more ways to welcome Him into our lives every day?
Do we realize that for Jesus’
mission to be complete in us,
we must cleanse our hearts of sin?
Do we celebrate the birth of
the person who is the King of our lives.
Do we see Christ in others?
Will love or just obligation
be the reason we do things for others.
I find peace in the notes of
“O Come, O Come Emmanuel”,
the comfort of the peace of Christ,
because I
know that He HAS come to me, to us.
I also found joy in the “Carol
of the Bells” as the musicians rang out
the joy that God has provided me and all of us
with a path
to salvation.
May each of you find peace AND
joy
as we move closer to
Christmas.
Come, Lord Jesus, come!
And let us rejoice and sing
joyfully!
