Dec 13 2020

First reading Isaiah 61:1-2,10-11

He has sent me to proclaim a year of favour from the Lord

The spirit of the Lord has been given to me,

for the Lord has anointed me.

He has sent me to bring good news to the poor,

to bind up hearts that are broken;

to proclaim liberty to captives,

freedom to those in prison;

to proclaim a year of favour from the Lord.

‘I exult for joy in the Lord,

my soul rejoices in my God,

for he has clothed me in the garments of salvation,

he has wrapped me in the cloak of integrity,

like a bridegroom wearing his wreath,

like a bride adorned in her jewels.

‘For as the earth makes fresh things grow,

as a garden makes seeds spring up,

so will the Lord make both integrity and praise

spring up in the sight of the nations.’

Responsorial Psalm Luke 1:46-50,53-54

My soul rejoices in my God.

My soul glorifies the Lord,

my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour.

He looks on his servant in her nothingness;

henceforth all ages will call me blessed.

The Almighty works marvels for me.

Holy his name!

His mercy is from age to age,

on those who fear him.

He fills the starving with good things,

sends the rich away empty.

He protects Israel, his servant,

remembering his mercy.

Second reading 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24

May you all be kept safe for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ

Be happy at all times; pray constantly; and for all things give thanks to God, because this is what God expects you to do in Christ Jesus.

Never try to suppress the Spirit or treat the gift of prophecy with contempt; think before you do anything – hold on to what is good and avoid every form of evil.

May the God of peace make you perfect and holy; and may you all be kept safe and blameless, spirit, soul and body, for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. God has called you and he will not fail you.

Gospel John 1:6-8,19-28

‘There stands among you the one coming after me’

A man came, sent by God.

His name was John.

He came as a witness,

as a witness to speak for the light,

so that everyone might believe through him.

He was not the light,

only a witness to speak for the light.

This is how John appeared as a witness. When the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, ‘Who are you?’ he not only declared, but he declared quite openly, ‘I am not the Christ.’ ‘Well then,’ they asked ‘are you Elijah?’ ‘I am not’ he said. ‘Are you the Prophet?’ He answered, ‘No.’ So they said to him, ‘Who are you? We must take back an answer to those who sent us. What have you to say about yourself?’ So John said, ‘I am, as Isaiah prophesied:

a voice that cries in the wilderness:

Make a straight way for the Lord.’

Now these men had been sent by the Pharisees, and they put this further question to him, ‘Why are you baptising if you are not the Christ, and not Elijah, and not the prophet?’ John replied, ‘I baptise with water; but there stands among you – unknown to you – the one who is coming after me; and I am not fit to undo his sandal-strap.’ This happened at Bethany, on the far side of the Jordan, where John was baptising.

Reflection

Joy

The good news brought by Jesus is of God’s love reaching out to the poor, to those closed in with nowhere to go, to the blind who cannot see their way and to the oppressed who are weighed down under the burdens of life and who have lost hope. To all who feel this way, Jesus is a source of joy, and it is the feeling that pervades all today’s readings.

The opening word ‘Rejoice’ is ‘Gaudete’ in Latin – and so today has traditionally been called ‘Gaudete Sunday’. This is also why we have a rose coloured candle and hanging. Our joy flows from the realisation that Christmas is very near. God is coming with special graces for all who cry out to God in their distress.

Normally the Response is taken from the Psalms, but today we have the canticle of Mary, the Magnificat – a cry of joy from a young woman who has been loved by God. God has covered her with his glory, taken her into his embrace and breathed his Spirit into her, and the fruit of their love is the Messiah, conceived in her womb.

In the Second Reading Paul, too, calls on the Christian community in Thessalonika to ‘be happy at all times’, living constantly in the presence of God and thanking God for the many blessings they have received through God’s love. This is the source of our joy, so long as we are in tune with God dwelling in our hearts and listening to God’s inspiration.

On the subject of joy, a contemporary Carmelite reminds us that spiritual joy is not an emotion but ‘a choosing to place one’s happiness where it belongs: in the fulfilment of life’s deepest purposes – in pleasing the Father’ (Ruth Burrows, Ascent to Love page 88).

One can experience joy on a cross. It is a matter of focusing on love and filling every moment with whatever love God offers us to give – however we might be feeling.

Ultimately, the source of our joy is the realisation that we do not have to be strong on our own. We are surrounded by love. This is highlighted in today’s Gospel. The focus is on John the Baptist, whose mission from God was to point people towards Jesus. The Baptist was not trying to shed light himself. Rather, he pointed to Jesus.

John’s first image of Jesus is of one who is standing among us whom we do not know. John is challenging his community to reflect that they too, perhaps, are unaware of the presence of Jesus among them. The challenge of this opening scene is as urgent today as it ever was. Where is the Lord? How are we to prepare the way for his coming? Why do we not recognise him?

Are we, perhaps, so caught up in what we are doing that we forget that it is Jesus who is the revelation of God and the one who gives life? Our greatest privilege, as the Beloved Disciple knew so well, is to share in Jesus’ intimacy with God.

If, from that intimacy, we are graced to go out to others to attract them to Jesus that they too may share in his life, let us be grateful for the privilege. Let us not, however, be so caught up in the mission that we neglect the intimacy.

Fr Michael Fallon msc