A Letter from Fr. Paul - Sunday, December 17th

This third Sunday of Advent is called “Gaudete” Sunday.  The word “gaudete” means “rejoice” and rejoicing is a theme in our readings for this Sunday.  In the reading from Isaiah, we hear, “I rejoice heartily in the Lord.” The reading from 1st Thessalonians begins, “Rejoice always.” And the responsorial verse is from Mary: “My soul rejoices in my God.” We are rejoicing because of the coming of our Savior, which brings salvation to the whole world.  We rejoice at His coming as a child over 2,000 years ago and we rejoice that he will come to us at the end of our lives.
 
There is another common theme in our readings: Isaiah in the first reading, Mary in the responsorial psalm, and John the Baptist in the Gospel all bore witness to the coming of Christ.  While we are
rejoicing in the past and future coming of Christ, we must also
remember that He wants to come in the present time and we are an essential part of that.  By the way we live, with both words and
actions, we can bear witness to Christ and bring Him into this world to those around us.
 
Just as Isaiah, Mary, and John the Baptist all bore witness to what God has done and would do for His people, we need to do the same by the way we live our lives.  How we speak and interact with people does make a big difference.
 
I invite us to reflect during this last week of preparation before we celebrate the first coming of Christ on how we are doing at reflecting Christ to those around us. The more we are bringing Christ into the world each day, the more meaningful our celebration of Christmas will be!  May you and your family have a blessed Christmas, made holy by Christ’s presence among you!
 
Church sign of the week: Church is who we are, not where we go.