Home Advent CATHOLIC MASS: Third Sunday of Advent – Gaudete Sunday 12.13.15 – Video, Scripture, Links

CATHOLIC MASS: Third Sunday of Advent – Gaudete Sunday 12.13.15 – Video, Scripture, Links

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Bible-200“… Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice! …” +++ “Shout for joy … Sing joyfully … The LORD has removed the judgment against you … the King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst…” +++ “Cry out with joy and gladness: for among you is the Great and Holy One of Israel.” +++ “I am baptizing you with water, but One mightier than I is Coming. I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of His Sandals. He will Baptize you with the Holy Spirit and Fire. “

Mass Readings 12.13.15 – FIRST READING: Zephaniah 3:14-18a – PSALM: Isaiah 12:2-3, 4, 5-6 – SECOND READING: Philippians 4:4-7 – GOSPEL: Luke 3:10-18 – FIND A MASS: MassTimes.org – FIND A MASS: TheCatholicDirectory.com

 

SUNDAY TV MASS: Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception

SUNDAY TV MASS: Heart of the Nation (Wisconsin)

December 13, 2015: 3rd Sunday of Advent from Heart of the Nation on Vimeo.

LINKS & RESOURCES

FIRST READING

FIRST READING: Zephaniah 3:14-18a

Shout for joy, O daughter Zion! Sing joyfully, O Israel!
* * *
The LORD has removed the judgment against you
He has turned away your enemies;
the King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst,
you have no further misfortune to fear.

The Prophet Zephaniah exhorts his listeners to rejoice in God’s Presence among them, and promises that God is showing them Mercy.

God’s Mercy is removing a judgment against them, and turning away their enemies.

He exhorts them, and us, to take courage, to not fear.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM

PSALM: Isaiah 12:2-3, 4, 5-6

Cry out with joy and gladness: for among you is the Great and Holy One of Israel.

 

SECOND READING

SECOND READING: Philippians 4:4-7

On this Gaudete Sunday, Saint Paul exhorts us:

Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice!

He counsels us that:

  • the Lord is near
  • we should be kind, to the point where our kindness is known
  • set aside anxiety, and instead turn to God with prayer and requests

If we follow Paul’s advice, he predicts that, as a result, God will provide us peace and protect our hearts and minds, so that we can live in Christ.  The ineffable Peace of God goes beyond ordinary human understanding, yet It is Real.

Then the Peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

 

GOSPEL

GOSPEL: Luke 3:10-18

The crowds asked John the Baptist, ‘What should we do?’ He said … ‘Whoever has two cloaks should share with the person who has none. And whoever has food should do likewise.’
* * *
… the people were filled with expectation
* * *
‘I am Baptizing you with water, but One Mightier than I is Coming. I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of His sandals. He will Baptize you with the Holy Spirit and Fire. …

We encounter Saint John the Baptist, Herald of the Messiah, a cousin of Jesus. A New Testament figure, the Baptist is sometimes referred to as the last of the Old Testament prophets, because of his position in a point of transition from the old way of doing things into the time of Christ.

In today’s Gospel, we see how:

  • people are drawn to Saint John the Baptist
  • the crowds ask “what are we to do?”; they seem to want a new life, and they want God
  • the people are filled with expectation
  • Saint John the Baptist promises that One Greater than he is still to Come
  • Christ will Baptize with the Holy Spirit and Fire
  • Christ will separate out the wheat from the chaff, judging between good and evil

As with us today, people feel drawn to God and drawn to holiness.  We realize the need for something more in our lives, and the need for changes in our lives, whether conversion from something bad or ongoing growth in things that are good.

When asked the basic question of what to do, Saint John the Baptist provides concrete direction.  We are help each other by sharing the things that we need.  Earthly needs are highly relevant to love and spiritual goodness, when we share and demonstrate love and mercy.

John also advises tax collectors and soldiers to be more honorable and less beholden to wealth.

In other words, he does not call for a “Sabbath-only” believer.  Rather he calls for full integration between Love of God and Faith, with how we live our lives at all times.

When encountering the Baptist and his Message, the people are filled with expectation.  They even wonder if John himself is the Christ.

John responds by exhorting them, and us, to anticipate the Arrival of the Messiah, One greater than he.   However, while the Arrival of Christ is Great and Wonderful, we also must be aware and, work to prepare ourselves, for the fact that the Arrival of Christ also bring Divine Judgment as well.  Christ will separate out the good from the evil, like someone separating the wheat and the chaff.  He is not an “I’m okay, you’re okay” Messiah.  The call to God’s Love and Mercy includes a call to conversion and rejection of sin, and embracing of the good, an ongoing Journey of Discipleship.

Exhorting them in many other ways, [John] preached Good News to the people.

 
 

 

More Resources

[Scripture passages excerpted or adapted from the NABRE, available online from the USCCB, which provides the following rights statement:

Scripture texts in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. and are used by permission of the copyright owner. All Rights Reserved. No part of the New American Bible may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the copyright owner.]

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