Dear Parishioners and Friends of St. Mary’s of the Lake:

 The four general themes for Advent are: Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love! As we begin our Third Week of Advent, may I invite you to reflect on JOY. As you know, the Third Sunday of Advent has traditionally been called Rejoice Sunday (or Lat. ‘Gaudete’ Sunday).  The name comes from the Entrance Chant for the Liturgy of the day –i.e. ‘Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice!‘ or  Lat. ‘Gaudete in Domino semper, iterim dico!’ (Phil 4: 4 & also Misallette p.3). We can look around and see everywhere a joyful atmosphere with joyful music & eye-catching decorations. We are joyfully sending & receiving cards, emails, Facebook or Twitter. We sing Christmas carols with joy. We take part in various joy-filled gatherings or parties etc. All in all, there are countless events or activities these days which have brought us a sense of JOY. However, with Rejoice Sunday, the Church would like to remind us: Don’t just focus simply on the external. Rather, we are called to see all the external joy-filled events or activities as an expression of our inner, true & lasting JOY –i.e. the only Son of God came to us in flesh to be the Emmanuel (God-with-us). May each one of us ‘Rejoice in the Lord always’ --especially during Advent & Christmas.

St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta once said: True JOY comes to us when we have our focus on J-O-Y: J stands for Jesus, O for Others, and Y for Yourselves (or Ourselves): The Readings for Mass on the Third SUN of Advent can also help us reflect on J-O-Y:

⬥ In the First Reading Zephaniah said: ‘Shout for Joy… Be glad and exult with all your heart’! WHY?  Because ‘the King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst!’  In all the hustle and bustle these days if the Lord is in our midst, if we put Jesus at the Center of all, He will bring us true Joy.
⬥ In the Gospel, St. John the Baptist said: ‘Whoever has 2 cloaks should share with the person who has none. And whoever has food should do likewise!’ In other words, St. John teaches us: Reach out to Others and you will find joy.

⬥ In the Second Reading, after saying ‘Rejoice in the Lord always’, St. Paul added: ‘In everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the Peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus’!  In other words, for Y/ourselves, if we have a true connection with God in prayers we will have Joy & Peace!

In Hope & Peace, let us open our hearts for true JOY as we prepare to reflect on Love next week!

Fr. Philip