Reflection for the Second Sunday of Advent By Deacon Skip Royer
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Reflection by Deacon SkipOne time, a young boy went with his family to a relative’s house for Thanksgiving Day. Because the young boy would probably not see the relatives on Christmas, his Christmas gift was given to his parents to be held and not opened until Christmas day. The parents put the gift on the shelf in the father’s closet. It seemed that every time the father opens his closet door the boy is there full of anticipation, asking if he can open his gift now. The father answers, “You must wait until Christmas.“ As the days go by the boy becomes more anxious, waiting for the joy he expects when he opens the gift. Is this not unlike the period of Advent, a special time in the church calendar set aside so we can prepare ourselves, and renew ourselves, for the joy and peace of Christmas, and to prepare ourselves for the second coming of Christ at the end of time?
Third Sunday of Advent, December 13, 2020
Isaiah 61:1 - 2A, 10 -11, 1 Thessalonians 5:16 -24, John 1:6 -8, 19 -28
The whole cycle of our life, day after day, is spent preparing for some event. One goes to school to prepare ourselves to live in our society. Days are spent planning and preparing for a party. Months are spent in a family preparing for a wedding. People celebrate what is important to them, and the more important the celebration, the more intense is the preparation and the waiting.
Important to us in the church is the Christ event, the coming of the son of God in the person of Jesus, and all the things Jesus did and is doing for us. Today, the third candle of the advent wreath was lit to signify that we are halfway through our period of preparing and waiting. Today we are told to rejoice, Gaudete Sunday. It is the day we are called to recall the good things God has already done for us and what he promises to do in the future. In the second reading today Paul says “rejoice always.“ Paul recognized that God is the cause and the source of our joy. In spite of his many trials and sufferings in his life, Saint Paul was joyful. His joy was a sign of God‘s constant presence.
Today there is a lesson for us in what Saint Paul says. There probably is not one of us here who does not carry some sort of trial, many times a burden that seems too much, too heavy. We must remember that Christ carried many burdens in his life, as did Mary, his mother. Saint Paul and the apostles were not free of troubles, yet they had joy because God is the source of the joy and they were close to God. The new salvation, eternal joy was possible. That’s what the gospel is all about. The Good News – that God loves us and is merciful to us, God sent his only son to save us, and that we will be able to live free of the trails forever someday.
Have you ever heard someone say, “I don’t feel I need God now, I may later.“ And you might think, “wow,“ how can someone say that? But stop and think, how many times during the week do we really say that? How many times do we try to confront a problem without asking God’s help – perhaps not even thinking at the moment at all about God – and try to solve the problem alone? We only bring God into our every act by becoming close to him, and we do that by prayer, constant prayer every day. Saint Paul says “never cease praying.“
If a girl moves away from home and never writes her father, never calls him, never visits him, then eventually that girl will, for the most part forget about her father. On the other hand, if that girl’s father gets sick and she returns home and cares for him, he is constantly on her mind. So it’s the same way with God, we have to constantly thank God, constantly rejoice in all that has been done for us, and make God a part of our everyday life. Then we will experience the joy of God‘s presence, the same joy that sustained Saint Paul when he was in prison, the joy that sustains all good people around us to do good works and to submit to God‘s will. John the Baptist rejected all the comforts of this world to follow the mission God gave him. He had a chance to have some glory when the people ask him if he was the Messiah. But humbly he said “I am not worthy to even untie his sandals.“ He stepped aside and made way for the Lord. That is what we are asked to do during this period of Advent, to step aside of pride, pleasures that lead us away from God, and to be open to all the ways given to us to make the joy of God‘s presence felt in us at all times.
Today on Gaudete Sunday, the third Sunday of Advent, we are halfway through our Advent pilgrimage. As we near Christmas, a tone is set of joyful expectation for the Lord’s birth – and his second coming at the end of time.
Let us rejoice and be glad!
Deacon Skip
