Gaudette Sunday! Rejoice Sunday!

Gaudette Sunday!  Rejoice Sunday!



The theme of the third Sunday of Advent is joy. This Sunday is called Gaudete Sunday or Rejoice Sunday. All Christians should rejoice in the Lord. In the first reading of the Book of Zephaniah, we read, “Shout for joy, O daughter Zion! Sing joyfully, O Israel! Be glad and exult with all your heart, O daughter Jerusalem!” In the Second reading, St. Paul says, “Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice!"

On the third Sunday of Advent, the theme is joy and encouragement. In the middle of Advent preparation, the Church invites us to rejoice because we are close to the   Christmas celebration. The rose candle is lit, and the priest wears a rose Chasuble.

The prophet Zephaniah prophesied seven hundred years before the birth of Jesus. On the third Sunday of Advent, we read from the last part of Zephaniah (3:14-18a) addressing the “daughter Zion,” Jerusalem – the Lord renews the love for Jerusalem. This reading comes from a time shortly after the Assyrians wiped out the northern part of Israel. Most of Zephaniah’s book records his efforts to correct abuses among God’s people. His books end on a note of hope. The Prophet told them God would gather his humble one into the holy city and restore its fortunes. We can see similar passages throughout the Old    Testament. We read in the book of Joel 2:27, “You know that you are amid Israel and that I, the Lord, am your God and there is no one else. And my people will never again be put to shame.”

This passage is read for the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary and for the Church, other than the third Sunday of Advent. Mary is the daughter of Zion, who can rejoice  because “the Lord is in her midst.” Mary is the spouse of the Holy Spirit. However, Zephaniah’s nuptial language can also be applied to the Church, the bride of Christ. The human and divine natures are wed in one flesh through the incarnation.

The Gospel talks about how to prepare the next 9 days for Christmas. In the Gospel, John the Baptist called people to a baptism of repentance so they would be prepared to receive Jesus and see the Lord. People kept coming to John in the desert. They asked him, “What should we do?” John prescribed penance to improve their life. He asked them to share what they have, not steal what belongs to others, and treat others with dignity. Those gathered around him wondered whether John might be the Messiah. John clarified that he is not the Messiah and told them that when the Messiah comes, he will baptize them with the   sanctifying grace of the Holy Spirit (CCC693).

In the second reading, Paul was very proud of and confident in the people of Philippian Christians. Paul wrote them and commanded them to rejoice beyond their difficulties. Paul says, “Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: Rejoice.”