Meditation Week 3

The third Sunday of Advent is known as Gaudete Sunday in the liturgical calendar of the Western Church.  It anticipates the joy of the Christmas celebration.  Gaudete is the Latin word meaning rejoice, the first word in the entrance hymn to the liturgy:

Gaudete in Domino semper:iterum dico, gaudete.

Modestia vestra nota sit omnibus hominibus:Dominus enim prope est. 

Nihil solliciti sitis:sed in omni oratione petitiones vestræ innotescant apud Deum.

Benedixisti Domine terram tuam: avertisti captivitatem Jacob.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice.

Let your forbearance be known to all,for the Lord is near at hand; 

have no anxiety about anything,but in all things, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving,let your requests be known to God. 

Lord, you have blessed your land;

you have turned away the captivity of Jacob.

(Phil. 4:4–6; Psalm 85:2).

Rose is the traditional color of Gaudete Sunday. This was a reference to  Laudete Sunday in the liturgical season known as Lent (prior to Easter), because traditionally, Advent was a season of penitence, like Lent.

That has been thought-provoking for me.  I have a very vague, dim memory of Advent being like that when I was a child—a season when you seriously considered the state of your soul, and what you needed to change.  A season of reflection, sparse as a New England winter, somber as the days themselves, getting progressively shorter in our march towards the darkest day of the year, the Winter Solstice.  Everything seemed congruent. 

What a contrast to today’s fragmented frenzy, the celebration of self, and the stress that results!  Is anyone satisfied? 

What would satisfy you this year? 

What would you miss by not celebrating Christmas? 

What would you miss if you missed the next party or gathering?   

What would you miss by not staying home? 

Where is your joy in Christmas?  

Does joy need to be restored?
   

This week, reflect a bit on these questions.  What is the Lord whispering to you?