The third candle of the Advent Wreath has been lighted for this Sunday and its color characterizes the theme of the day. It is joy. It is called Gaudete Sunday which stems from the entrance antiphon “Gaudete in Domino Semper” which is translated as “Rejoice in the Lord Always.” Joy is not just a human experience but it is a gift and a task that comes directly from the Lord. To rejoice is a command to fulfill because joy is a divine gift that God endows. The readings would like to help us further see the meaning of joy which will prepare us more to meet the Lord on Christmas Day.

1. Joy is always New

As a heavenly gift, joy is not just a feeling. It is an interior disposition and an inner way of life. Joy is always born anew because if it is from God, it is always alive and enduring. Pope Francis said: “a joy ever new, a joy which is shared.” The source of joy is God and so it is constantly shared. If we want to be joyful, and if we want to share our joys, it should be new. Newness of joy can only be found in God and should come from Him. When we attribute joy as coming from the world, it would not be true joy because the world cannot provide an ever-pervading joy. The Pope continues to say that joy cannot be from the temporal world because the danger of today’s world “is the desolation and anguish born of a complacent yet covetous heart, the feverish pursuit of frivolous pleasures, and a blunted conscience.” (EG 1) In the Gospel today, the disciples of John were sent by him to ask Jesus these words: “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?” But Jesus did not answer the question, rather He told them: “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind regained their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them. And blessed is the one who takes no offense at me.” Joy is linked with Christ, it is the purpose of Jesus’ ministry, and it is ultimately the sign of the restoration of humanity. To be gathered in the mass and to celebrate it worthily is to be restored in Christ with joy.

2. Joy is Gift of a Steadfast Love

         Joy is a gift that endures, adapts, and renews because it largely depends of the virtue of love. Love would not be tangible enough without the element of joy because it is love that seeks the heart and its stirrings within the entire being of the person. Therefore, joy is dependent of the quality of love. There is an anticipated joy which is born out of love. In the second reading today, the Letter of James reminds us that a person who anticipates joy is one who is patient. The second reading says: “Be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains.” There is steadfast joy because there is steadfast love. Pope Francis said: “joy is not expressed the same way at all times in life, especially at moments of great difficulty. Joy adapts and changes, but it always endures, even as a flicker of light born of our personal certainty that, when everything is said and done, we are infinitely loved” (EG 6). In the song popularized by George Benson entitled “Nothing’s Gonna Change My Love For You” there are lines that speak of the inseparability between love and joy. It says: “If the road ahead is not so easy our love will lead the way for us like a guiding star. I’ll be there for you if you should need me You don’t have to change a thing. I love you just the way you are.” These lines speak of three important things namely: first, the adaptability of joy and love to every situation. Second, it speaks of hope as inseparable from love. And third, it speaks of higher and wider things than just mere tangible experience of human joy and love.

3. Joy is the Fruit of a True Encounter

         Joy can only be truly encountered with God. The prophet said: “Here is your God.” If joy is experienced in the world, we can only find degrees of joy. There are persons or places where joy can be recalled, celebrated, and promoted but there is a highest form of joy which the world cannot give and it is the joy of God. The Prophet Isaiah, in the first reading for this Sunday reminded the people of Israel that God our joy and He is a God of promise and a God worth of hospitality. A God of promise because He desires humanity to be joyful. The prophet said: “the desert and the parched land will exult; the steppe will rejoice and bloom. They will bloom with abundant flowers, and rejoice with joyful song. The glory of Lebanon will be given to them, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God.” He is a God worthy of hospitality because once a person encounters the Lord there would be healing and blessing. Healing and blessing come from cooperation, sharing, and submission of oneself to God. The prophet continues saying: “Strengthen the hands that are feeble, make firm the knees that are weak, say to those whose hearts are frightened: Be strong, fear not!”