Homily for the Third Sunday of Advent, Dec. 15, 2024. Zephaniah 3:1-5; Philippians 4:4-7.
Theme: A Real Reason to Rejoice!
Today is Gaudete Sunday which signals the beginning of the Third Week of Advent. Our liturgical heritage makes use of colors to express our Faith and so today pink makes its Advent appearance symbolizing joy. The rose-colored candle of the Wreath and the pink vestments worn at Mass are meant to send a visual message announcing that the Lord’s coming draws near. Both the prophet Zephaniah and St. Paul invite us in our readings today to “be not discouraged” but instead to “rejoice in the Lord always.” But it might be a bit difficult for many of us to
hear our Liturgy today give a shout out to Christian joy.
However, this message might hit home more powerfully if we have an awareness of what was going on in the lives of these men as they proclaimed their encouraging words. When Zephaniah spoke about shouting with joy, the Hebrews were about to undergo one of the most terrifying episodes in their history in which invading enemies would destroy their land, decimate their holy city and take them captive as slaves. And St. Paul’s upbeat words about rejoicing always were written from a cold dark damp Roman prison cell, where he was in chains, awaiting trial by the Emperor and eventual martyrdom for Christ. I think that knowing these facts about their situations can be helpful for us during the holiday season which is supposed to be, as one of our Christmas songs puts it, “the happiest time of the year”. But is it really? And is
it possible to rejoice and be full of cheer no matter what’s going on around us?
Our contemporary culture and Christianity have two very different and in many ways opposing understandings of what “Christmas cheer" means. It's important for us to remember that there is a real difference between "joy" and "happiness" even though we typically use these words interchangeably. The emotion of “being happy” as our culture defines it is based on things that are going on around us to make us “feel good”. It’s dependent upon our surroundings which can flip-flop and change in a moment. But joy, on the other hand, is born of the conviction that we are individually and unconditionally loved by God and that nothing — sickness,
failures, emotional distress, oppression, war, or even death — can take that love with its joy away. You see, Christian joy is rooted in what the prophet Zephaniah says to us today, that “God will rejoice over you with gladness and renew you in his love…he will sing joyfully because of you.” Do you believe that God Himself rejoices over YOU? Not because you (or I) have done something marvelous or are outstanding creatures, but simply because we exist. If you let the profound reality of that infallible Scripture really sink in , I would think it should bring
you a deep sense of joy.
So we see that rejoicing can be present even amidst sadness. And how appropriate that
immediately after encouraging us to “rejoice always”, St. Paul tells us to “have no anxiety at all”, because for many people anxiety reaches a peak at Christmas time. Trying to maintain our holiday expectations can be emotionally draining and physically exhausting. The “ho ho ho” of jolly old St. Nick can easily end up sounding like a mockery because of all the planning and rushing. There can be a great deal of stress that makes it very challenging to be joyful as we brace ourselves for the inevitable family frictions to come or frustrate ourselves by trying to fit
too many things into an already crammed schedule.
And on top of all this, our traditional American Christmas culture puts into our heads the false image of a perfect Christmas, as if such a thing exists. It tells us that we must be surrounded by perfect presents, that are all perfectly wrapped and placed under a perfectly decorated tree. Then we are expected to gather with our perfect family in order to eat the perfect meal, while of course enjoying perfect conversation which is shared by all in perfect harmony. And while we all know this is not realistic, for some reason year after year we keep expecting it on some level!
And so we need to keep reminding ourselves that real “holiday cheer” is not of the kind we find in Christmas cards or Hallmark movies. Rather, it's an inner happiness that’s not based on false expectations. We are joyful because of the Baby laying in the manger of Bethlehem and what He grew up to be and to do for us. We cherish the Christmas story year after year because it assures us that we no longer have to walk through life alone because the Son of God has become and remains one of us; that He delights in us and sings joyfully over us. And this is the true rejoicing of Gaudete Sunday. This is the authentic holiday cheer of Christmas which
brings us a joy that can be ours all year long.
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