By Fr. Francis Gonsalves, SJ –
Third Sunday of Advent – Cycle C
Zeph 3:14-18; Phil 4:4-7; Lk 3:10-18
“God will exult over you with loud singing as on a day of festival” (Zeph 3:18)
Three Scriptural Signposts:
1. Today’s first reading is unusual because it is the only time in the 3-year liturgical cycle that a reading is chosen from Prophet Zephaniah who preaches to the people of Judah and Jerusalem during a period of religious, spiritual and moral decadence. Zephaniah’s prophetic activity coincides with the reign of Josiah (640-609 B.C.), and almost solely deals with predictions of judgment. The first two chapters of the book, as well as the first part of the third chapter, is full of frightening prophesies of the fate that will befall the people who have succumbed to idolatry and immorality.
However, the tone of today’s first reading is totally different—it reverberates with joy. “Sing aloud, O daughter Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart!” since: (a) God takes away the judgements against you, (b) Your God is in your midst, (c) God renews you in his love, and (d) God sings as on a day of festival. Today, we celebrate what has traditionally been called ‘Gaudete (rejoice) Sunday’ – the halfway mark in Advent.
2. The readings of Advent are meant to point to three ‘comings’: (a) the Lord’s first coming, which has already occurred in history; (b) Christ’s second coming, which will be in the Parousia at the end of times; and, (c) the Lord’s daily coming in the ups and downs of our earthly pilgrim path. Zephaniah points to that ‘Day’ when weeping shall be turned to joy, when despair shall fructify into hope, and fear shall be transformed into love, for, “The Lord, your God, is in your midst.” (v.17). We, as Christians, know for sure, that our God, Emmanuel, has, indeed, come.
There is certainly reason to rejoice and be glad since God forgives us, loves us and embraces us into a New Covenantal Love. We can feel secure in the love, mercy and presence of this God who is king and warrior who governs and protects us, as well as father-mother who loves us and cares for us. Rejoice! For “your God exults over you with loud singing” as if celebrating some feast with a loved one.
3. The Gospel of Luke reintroduces the figure of John the Baptist who, last week, called us to prepare the way of the Lord and to make his paths straight. One will surely not associate John the Baptist with singing and dancing (although he reportedly gave an embryonic ‘leap of joy’ while still in his mother’s womb in the presence of his mother’s cousin, Mary, herself expecting Jesus!).
Nonetheless, one can think of John as a connecting-link between the Old and the New Covenant. Just as a sutradaar in a drama or the MC of a programme introduces the actors and artists and then disappears from the scene, so does John introduce Jesus to the world: “He who is more powerful than I is coming … He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire …” The Holy Spirit is associated with fire (as at Pentecost, the ‘tongues of fire’); and, fire is also regarded as an energizing and purifying agent. When asked: “What should we do?” John advises three groups of penitents—the general public, tax-collectors and soldiers – to do concrete acts of reparation. What should you and I do?
Possible Link in the 2nd Reading:
The second reading traditionally gave this third Sunday of Advent the prefix ‘gaudete’: rejoice! Although we use the same liturgical purple for both, Advent and Lent, on this Sunday, we use a slightly different rose-coloured vestment. We note that Advent is not a sorrowful season but is marked with a gradual crescendo of joy that will overflow at Christmas. Indeed, as our Saviour approaches, we become more and more excited. Paul thus exhorts us: “Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I say, rejoice!” This is a common hymn that we sing so often. If one were to dwell on theme of Adventist joy and rejoicing, one will realize that words like joy, rejoice, exult, praise, sing, song, shout and so on occur in the first two readings and psalm almost twenty times!
No Psalm this Week?
This week also departs from the usual practice of praying a psalm as response. Instead, we have a song from the book of Isaiah that probably expresses the joy of return from Exile. The hymn gives thanks for salvation and ‘locates God’, so to say, “in the midst of Israel.” The response: “Shout and sing for joy, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel!” gives us a foretaste of the supreme salvation of God-with-us in Jesus Christ. All our rejoicing, ultimately, has to do with our salvation and that of our sisters and brothers who we strive to serve and save along with us.
Three Texts from Catholic Tradition:
1. St. John Chrysostom (347-407) – is one who always insisted on the necessity of giving away any excess we have. To those who asked John the Baptist, “What should we do?” Chrysostom says: “Give away all the excess you have … Not doing so is robbery.”
2. Henri Nouwen, (1932-1996) describes the difference between joy and happiness: “While happiness is dependent on external conditions, joy is the experience of knowing that you are unconditionally loved and that nothing—sickness, failure, emotional distress, oppression, war, or even death—can take that love away. Thus, joy can be present even in the midst of sadness.”
3. Pope Francis untiringly speaks of joy – Citing the 2nd reading of today, he preached on Gaudete Sunday in 2017: “Always be happy …. always remain joyful, even when things do not go according to our desires …. The joy of the Christian comes from faith and from the encounter with Jesus Christ, the reason for our happiness … The more we are rooted in Christ, the more we find inner serenity, even in the midst of everyday contradictions.”
A Current Concern:
Beating their drums, some 200 Christians of Dalit origin marched through the streets New Delhi lately on December 4, in a novel form of protest to demand that they be given social benefits denied to them because of their Christian faith. Dalits of Christian origin continue to scream, shout and drum for their rights; but their pleas have fallen on deaf ears. Why?
In Lighter Vein:
A wise and holy pastor was expected in town. All the faithful were armed with questions to test the holy man’s wisdom. When he arrived, he gazed at the eyes of those assembled. He began to hum a tune. Some people hummed along with him. Then, the pastor sang and many sang with him. Finally, he began to dance. The congregation followed suit. Soon everybody became absolutely absorbed in the dancing, oblivious of all else. An hour later, when the dance had drained everyone of all inner tensions, there was total silence. The pastor then said, “I guess I’ve answered all your questions.”
Fr. Francis Gonsalves is a Gujarat Jesuit, former Principal of Vidyajyoti College, Delhi, and currently Dean of Theology at Jnana-Deepa Vidyapeeth, Pune. He is also the Executive Secretary of the CCBI Commission for Theology and Doctrine. He has authored many books and articles and is a columnist with The Asian Age and The Deccan Chronicle national dailies.