JOYFUL EXPECTATION.
December 11, 2022.
Third Sunday of Advent (Gaudete) – A.
“The desert and the
parched land will exult; the steppe will rejoice and bloom. They will bloom
with abundant flowers, and rejoice with joyful song.” Is 35:1
A Dutch proverb
says: “It’s a poor heart that never rejoices.” And an Ivorian proverb adds:
“The chicken that sits along the road to eat shall never enjoy a good meal.”
Advent is a time of
a joyful expectation. It is not a season of sorrow or tears like Lent. Advent
is not a penitential season, but rather a preparation for greater joy that is
the coming of the Lord. All that is done with optimism and positivity always
reaches completion. Even expectations, when fed on joy are never deceived. Joy
is something we should all develop, especially as Christians, Joy must be part
of our life. For, the Joy of Christ, the Joy of the Gospel always invades our
beings and gives meaning to our existence.
Starting his
Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium, Pope Francis states: "The joy of
the gospel fills the hearts and lives of all who encounter Jesus. Those who
accept his offer of salvation are set free from sin, sorrow, inner emptiness
and loneliness. With Christ joy is constantly born anew." And the Holy
Father echoes the expectation of the children of Israel about the Messiah, quoting
the Prophet Zechariah: “Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion! Shout aloud, O
daughter Jerusalem! Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is
he” (Ze 9:9).
In this Advent
journey, we have embarked on that joy. The Lord who we await is near. Soon his
light will shine in the darkness of our world and bring solace to our humanity
disfigured by egoism, hedonism, hatred, wars, pandemics, and all kinds of
calamities. We await in joy the coming of a new dawn. Thus, our today's candle
symbolizes the joy of today and the coming greater joy.
The word of God,
starting with the entrance antiphon sings that joy: "Rejoice in the Lord
always; again I say, rejoice. Indeed, the Lord is near." (Phil 4:4-5) The
reason why we rejoice is that the Lord is coming. And not only is he coming,
but he is also bringing about salvation. Isaiah, in the first reading, tells us
that God himself is coming to save us. To the suffering and weeping children of
Israel, the Prophet raises this hope: "Courage! Do not be afraid. Look, your
God is coming, vengeance is coming, the retribution of God; he is coming to
save you." He will bring about a salvation that will be physically felt by
the needy, and even individually. "The eyes of the blind shall be opened,
the ears of the deaf unsealed, then the lame shall leap like a deer and the
tongues of the dumb sing for joy..." The coming of the Lord will be a time
of restoration. So, rejoice!
The Apostle James,
in the second reading, tells us about our attitude toward expectation. He says:
"Be patient, brothers, until the Lord’s coming." When you await
someone to come or something to happen, the best way is patience. Those who are
not patient waste opportunities and lose their chance to see the fulfillment of
their hope. Patience leads to joy. Precipitation and rush to deception. James
tells us that we should imitate the attitude of the farmer. No one is ever
patient like a farmer or an agriculturer. He sows the seed. Waters it
patiently. Look at it becoming a young plant. The plant turns into a tree. And
the tree will flourish and bear fruits. The fruits also will go through their
process, grow, mature, and be ready for harvest. Without patience, we cannot be
farmers or agriculturers. At the end, when comes the time of the harvest, great
joy. We even forget the laborious previous process. Advent is a time of
patience.
Patience is the
fertilizer of the seed of joy. Oftentimes, patience is something you have to
endure or put up with. But to accompany it with joy is a whole different
reality. In the Gospel, we hear about John the Baptist about to lose patience.
He has announced with great assurance the coming of the Messiah and invited the
people, through his baptism of repentance to make a way ready to welcome him.
But then, the one he introduced to them as the Lamb of God seems to behave
differently. John, while in his prison has lost enthusiasm and his joy with it.
So, he sent messengers to ask Jesus: "Are you the one who is to come, or
have we got to wait for someone else?"
Like John, we too,
sometimes, travel through the dark night of uncertainties and confusion and we
tend to lose patience. In those times, joy also vanishes from our sight. The
word of God today sounds like a warning: do not lose hope! Be patient!
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