Breaking Open the Word
December 14
Introduction
Happy Gaudete Sunday! This third Sunday of Advent we take a little break from the purple vestments and go with rose colored vestments…that’s rose, not pink… The word “Gaudete” is Latin for rejoice, and that is what we do today, we rejoice in anticipation of the coming of our Lord, Jesus Christ. We rejoice because God has called us to this moment. We rejoice because our Holy Mother loves us so very much that she said “Yes” and she keeps saying “Yes”. We rejoice because you and I have said “Yes, Lord! We want to be near you!”
Isaiah 35: 1-6, 10
Psalm 146
James 5:7-10
Matthew 11: 2-11
Gospel Explained
Setting the stage… Our gospel this week begins with establishing that John the Baptist has been imprisoned in Galilee by Herod Antipas, a corrupt and incompetent tetrarch who wanted to take land from his brothers by any means necessary. Jesus moved to Capernaum after He previously heard of John the Baptist’s imprisonment. That is important in Matthew’s gospel as Matthew’s primary audience was the Jewish people so tying events to prophecies was important. Matthew notes in Chapter 4 that Capernaum is a part of the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali – the place from which the Messiah was to come as we read in Isaiah.
John the Baptist sends his disciples to get clarification from Jesus as to whether Jesus was, and is, the Messiah. John the Baptist was likely expecting more of a thunderous entrance to the world than what Jesus was doing, and therefore sought clarification as to whether John had gotten confused, got things wrong, and was speaking too quickly about the impending coming of the Messiah. John was not just a prophet, he was a messenger. A prophet foretells, and yes, he did that, but a messenger is making a more immediate announcement.
The answer Jesus gives John’s disciples comes from the book of Isaiah which foretold that great deeds were to be accomplished. It is as if Jesus is instructing the disciples to go back and tell John that John got it right. The time has come. It just was not looking the way John expected it, and that’s ok.
Jesus then turns to the people and asks what they were seeking when they went to hear John the Baptist. They were clearly seeking the Messiah. Jesus quotes from the book of the prophet Malachi but with one very important difference. Jesus says: “Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you; he will prepare your way for you.” In Malachi, the words are the messenger will prepare the way for God. Jesus is thus confirming that he is the Messiah for whom they had been waiting.
As amazed the people were with John, Jesus tells them that being present in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than the status John had attained. We can take the word “heaven” in this case to mean God. Matthew would have used the term Heaven rather than God as the Jewish people would have avoided saying God in reverence to God.
Today's Theme
Today’s Theme: Rejoice
There is great joy in the completion of anticipation that moves into celebration of things working out as we had hoped. At the beginning of the Baptism Rite for a baby in particular, the priest or deacon announces the name of the baby to be baptized and reads to the parents, godparents, and those attending: “…the Christian community welcomes you with great joy…” We take a moment to rejoice over two things: 1) the parents spent 9 months awaiting the birth of this beautiful child, and 2) the Church is incredibly happy to accept this baby into the Church and the body of Christ.
This weekend we take that same kind of pause to share with one another how incredible it is that our Jesus would come to us and greatly desire to be our Savior, the Messiah for whom we have been waiting. Much of what you hear at Sunday’s Mass will revolve around that joy. The prayer that begins a Mass is called the Collect – in that Collect this week, Father will read “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.” From the very start of the Mass, we take a step back, slow down, and remember this Christmas celebration is one of great joy.
Our rejoicing is not just the coming of Jesus, but rests in the reason why it is significant. Jesus humbled Himself to become like mankind. He does that to conquer sin by entering into all of the challenges of our lives and showing us a better way. Our salvation does not come from Jesus being born into this world, but rather in His dying and rising. Jesus is our Lord. He conquers all things – not some of them – ALL OF THEM. He conquers even death. At the beginning of time God was there at creation, and at the other end of the spectrum, at our dying from this world, there is Jesus, waiting for us.
What happens in between our personal creation and our death from this world is what Jesus calls us to rejoice in – HE LOVES YOU! Let Him love you!
Theme in our Life Today
Christmas Joy In Our Life Today
As I write this today, the weather is pretty gloomy, and yet picturesque. The Christmas cards and the Christmas shows on TV tell me the ground should be snow covered for a white Christmas. The coffee cup on my desk this morning has a picture of St. Nicholas dressed in red and standing on snow covered ground. The lights on the houses in our neighborhood are decorated with brightly covered lights – looks great! A genuine Norman Rockwell painting kind of day.
This time of year, there is a lot telling us we should be jolly, and dig-doggity-diddy we should! The Church takes time this weekend to remind us to find joy in this season. We have an incredible Lord who finds us so very precious that He will do anything for us. He will literally die for us. What He won’t do, is force us to love Him back…and again, another reason to reinforce the joy of this season is we get to choose to love Him back.
There are a lot of very lonely people this time of year, a lot of very sad people. Maybe they have someone who died this past year, maybe they are without a job, maybe someone they love is very sick, maybe depression has taken such a hold on them that they just can’t get out of bed. Know that God wants YOU to share His joy with them. He will not force you to do it, He justs asks that you do it. Does not need to be anything extravagant, just show one person that you care.
Prepare for Sunday
To Prepare for this Sunday’s Liturgy of the Word, consider the following:
• S-l-o-w-d-o-w-n. Take time at the Adoration Chapel and rejoice with our Lord and just sit with Him
• Pray the St. Andrew Novena. It is a beautiful way to reflect on why we should be joyful. https://ewtn.co.uk/prayer-saint-andrew-novena/
• Invite someone back to Mass by asking them to join you at Christmas Mass
• GET TO RECONCILIATION!!!!!!!! NOW! DON’T WAIT – IT IS TOO IMPORTANT!!!!
Go smile at God today! It is a beautiful day so rejoice!!