Dear Friends,
Today we celebrate Gaudete Sunday and light the third, rose-coloured candle in our Advent wreath. Latin for ‘Rejoice’, Gaudete reminds us of the foundation of the Christian journey, the joy that must be evident in the Church. Joy is not the same as happiness, though they do sit well together, but we know that, even when happiness escapes us, we can experience an underlying sense of Joy.
Pope Francis quotes St Paul’s invitation: ‘Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice…. The Lord is at hand’ (Phil 4:4-5), and reminds us that this Joy, ‘…is not a superficial or purely emotional cheerfulness that the Apostle exhorts, nor is it the cheerfulness of worldliness or of consumerism.’ The taste of true joy,’…is a joy that touches our innermost being, as we await Jesus, who has already come to bring salvation to the world, the promised Messiah, born in Bethlehem of the Virgin Mary.’
True joy is meant to be universal, touching all men and women. Occasionally, we connect with this reality. During a visit to Vietnam in 2010, we attended Mass in St Joseph's Cathedral, Hanoi on the Feast of Christ the King, a very graced event even though I understood only 3 words in the liturgy - Jesus, Amen and Alleluia!! These were enough, however, as I realised how our faith binds us together wherever we are. A week later, we concelebrated Sunday Mass in the Parish of Cam Ranh, the Parish where Fr Tan lived as a child. Fr Tony Banks preached the homily and Fr Tan translated for those present.
I was struck by the number of young people at Mass, especially children who sang with great gusto. Each Sunday in Cam Ranh Parish, 30 catechists teach children the Faith. The liturgy incorporated elements of traditional culture with incense sticks burning in front of the altar during Mass. Even in this country that carries the aftermath of a long war, Christian Joy was evident.
Many of us carry the burdens of illness, grief and personal loss, fear and anxiety, family disruption, and financial worries too, but my hope for each of you and your families is that you can grasp the freedom that Jesus offers us at Christmas. As Church, we wait together, companions in prayer across the cultures of the world. Amid the commercial and cultural scream of ‘Christmas!’ we Christians attend to the Advent call to a time of stillness and waiting, silence and reflection. Pope Francis again:
‘We are called to let ourselves be drawn in by the feeling of exultation… this exultation, this joy. But a Christian who isn’t joyful is a Christian who is lacking something… It is heartfelt joy, the joy within which leads us forth and gives us courage… The Lord comes, he comes into our life as a liberator; he comes to free us from all forms of interior and exterior slavery. It is he who shows us the path of faithfulness, of patience and of perseverance because, upon his return, our joy will be overflowing.’
Gaudete! Rejoice! Let’s trust this gift of Joy that the Lord shares with us! Fr Dave