They shall obtain joy and gladness,
And sorrow and sighing shall flee away. (Is. 35:10)
And sorrow and sighing shall flee away. (Is. 35:10)
At last we come to that Sunday in Advent known as Gaudete (Joy). On this Sunday, pink as a symbol of our joy, is worn at Mass and the candle in the Advent wreath that is pink, is lit as well. We read in the Old and New Testaments about the joy of our salvation in Jesus Christ.
The peoples of the Old Testament had joy because they anticipated a time when the promised Messiah would come and “those who have been ransomed by the Lord...will enter Jerusalem
Today, our joy is anchored in the knowledge that God fulfilled His promise of a Savior- the One who came to free us from the shackles of original sin.
At this time of year, in the depth of deep darkness- it is dark here by 4:30 P.M.- we will celebrate the winter Solstice- the longest day of the year. It can be a reminder of the joy that seems to be lacking in our world at large. There is no room for hope, no possible way to feel anything but misery. But this is not the thinking of one who understands the true meaning of Advent- of why the Child is born in us, year after year, decade after decade, century after century, and will continue to be born until the end of time.
We as Christians should be a people full of joy, and Catholics more so because the “cause of our joy” is ever with us in the Eucharist.