Gaudete Sunday

This weekend we will be lighting the pink candle as well as using the rose or pink vestments. One of the things that this means is that Advent is over half way over and the coming of Christ in Christmas is getting closer! We only will wear the rose vestments for two weekends a year; Gaudete Sunday for the third Sunday in Advent and Laetare Sunday in the fourth Sunday during Lent. It is only an option to wear the rose color vestments and not required to wear it, but it is nice to have something visual to see the difference.

The words Laetare and Gaudete mean the same thing; they mean rejoice! This is because we are rejoicing that Christ is near. The word Laetare comes from an option introit or introduction to the Mass that is either said or sung which goes “Rejoice, O Jerusalem: and come together all you that love her: rejoice with joy, you that have been in sorrow: that you may exult, and be filled from the breasts of your consolation. (Psalm) I rejoiced at the things that were said to me: we shall go into the house of the Lord…”

You have heard me say this many times, but we are called to be joy-filled or joyful Christians in the world, no matter what is happening in our lives. As we continue to prepare ourselves for that wonderful coming of Christ again in the Christmas season, let us always remember to rejoice for the Lord’s coming, because that is the whole reason that we are celebrating this season of preparation. Even though we often get caught up in the material preparation, we still need to take some time to prepare for the coming of our Savior in a spiritual way.

In this final two weeks before Christmas day, the day in which the Church Christmas season begins, take some time to read the Christmas story. It is only in Matthew and Luke’s Gospels, but I would recommend reading the first two chapters of Luke slowly, taking some time in between the sections to reflect on what they mean. They go through the conception and birth of John the Baptist, to the great canticles or songs of Mary and Zechariah, to the birth of Jesus, the visit of the shepherds, (the visit from the Magi is in Matthew’s Gospel), and the two scenes that Holy Scripture gives us about Jesus’ childhood.

Take an hour to spend some time with the Lord as we prepare for His coming again! Let us leap for joy in this season of Advent leading into the Christmas season. When we can take some time to make straight the path of the Lord in our hearts, we can be ready to receive him again and again. So, when the Lord comes, we can echo the voices of the angels who said “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to the people of good will.”

God bless,
Fr. Ken