The third Sunday of Advent has traditionally been called Gaudete Sunday, or the Sunday for rejoicing. The idea of course comes from the prayers and readings of today's Mass. The entrance antiphon urges us to "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say rejoice. The Lord is near." 'Some people have just enough religion to make themselves miserable' wrote George Bernard Shaw. Obviously, I couldn't fully agree with him. But I do fully understand what he was getting at. As we see from today's gospel, Christianity does have a very demanding moral and ethical content. "If anyone has two tunics, he must share with the one who has none. No intimidation, no distortion, be content with your pay," John tells his listeners.
John is saying: Your saviour is already in your midst; live like this and you will come to recognise him. The gospel does challenge people, and it challenges radically. And a religion that doesn't challenge us is useless to us; it has lost its teeth.
Nevertheless, this moral side of christianity should not be harped upon to the exclusion of everything else. There is more to christianity than the moral dos and don'ts. There is the element of joy and thanksgiving, a fundamental disposition for anyone who believes that God became man at Christmas time. Too often, we find people who would place themselves on the highest rung of the Christian ladder spitting fire and brimstone at those whom they consider to be morally less improved then themselves.
But Paul, who could be a bad-tempered old grouch on a bad day, was the greatest exponent of the need for christian joy. The best example of this is to be found in todays letter to the Philippians. He urges them to rejoice in their humanity and to celebrate the human condition: "I want you to be happy, always happy in the Lord; let me repeat: what I want is your happiness. Let your gentleness be known to everyone."
This is a side of the christian message that we rarely hear. We are actually urged to celebrate our humanity. And how often do we find ourselves apologising for our humanity? After all, God deemed humanity capable of containing and expressing his own great love for the world. That is what the feast of Christmas is all about: God's great love for us in expressed in human form and frailty.
In fact the joy and celebration of our humanity which is urged upon us at advent time will be familiar to those of you who were blessed with the experience of awaiting the birth of your own children. Expectancy and joy are the two most prominent elements of the Advent season. It is a positive, hope-filled expectancy rather than a frustrating wait.
We try to express this hope-filled expectation with the progressively brightening Advent wreath and the empty crib. Today we light the pink candle, the candle of joy. Throughout the season of Advent, the christian community is cast in the role of expectant parents: there are great preparations, great expectations, a growing sense of joyful wonder and not a little fatigue thrown in too!!
But, again, this waiting is not to be a lazing around; we are expected to make the world a more fitting dwelling place for a saviour. And it is John the Baptist, as always, who points to the way: "Whoever has two coats must share with him who has none. Whoever has food must do likewise. Do not extort money from anyone by threats and false accusations." John outlines in clear, practical terms how we should prepare for the coming of the Messiah. This is active waiting. In other words, those who are disadvantaged or deprived in any way have a special claim upon the followers of Jesus.
This generosity of God is traditionally expressed at Christmas time when his followers exchange gifts with each other. This congregation has gone to great lengths over the last three weeks to give expression to this dimension of the Christian message. Through the Giving Tree, many of you have sought to 'give you cloak to those who have none.' The giving of gifts at christmas time has an established and rightful place in the Christian message. It is part of our personal efforts to make the world a better, happier place, a more fitting place for a vulnerable Christ child.This is the spirit of advent, the generous spirit of christianity. This is the spirit we try to capture on this Gaudete, joyful and expectant Sunday.
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