My friends, I was reminded today that I haven’t yet put out a Christmas Schedule, which I will do following sending out the homily (: Pastor Kathy

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My friends, we began the holy season of Advent uplifting the notion that these four weeks, and a short four weeks at that, are about “joy” and a joy that builds throughout this time. Our color is royal blue, even though in most Catholic churches, you will see purple as the predominant color.
Our Catholic church is a ritualistic one—something I have always most appreciated, as the signs and symbols that we use connect us back to our daily lives. As Catholics, we have over the years praised those who have helped us to make “rich” the times of the Church Year through signs and symbols that are meaningful to each particular season. because Advent is about “joy realized” in our God who loved us enough to send our brother Jesus to be, “one-with-us,” Emmanuel, we rightly see this season being about “joy in our God,” not guilt for our sinfulness which is depicted, as in the season of Lent with the color purple.
Every one of our Scripture readings for today, are virtually “exploding” with joy, so for us to not “get that” is simply, to me, mind-boggling! As I look around our world today, I see so many places and situations that need the remedy of “joy proclaimed,” and acted upon, and to spend any more time “feeling bad about ourselves,” than necessary, seems to me, a waste of precious time. Our God created us, I believe, for joy—a joy that moves into our world, with love and care—fixes what is broken, cures those who are ill, physically, emotionally, and spiritually, and genuinely works to help those treated unjustly.
It would seem that cultivating a “joy-filled heart” would give us the strength we need as Jesus’ followers to do the hard work that it takes to be about “loving” as opposed to “guilting” ourselves and others in this life.
As always, let’s look to the Scriptures for the best guidance. The prophet Zephaniah tells us to “fear not” for [our] “God is in our midst.” “Fearing” what we don’t know—how others may think of us—will we still be liked or accepted if we say or do this thing? –seems to go with the human condition. But the prophet clearly says, “Fear not” [!] Zephaniah continues, not only will, “God rejoice over you,” but “God will rejoice”… “with gladness!”
Paul, in his letter to the Philippians, says it not only once, but twice, “rejoice in the Savior always” [!]
Luke, through John the Baptist, gets at the “hard work” that it will take to be true followers of our brother Jesus. Coming at any “hard” problem with joy, coupled with a good measure of faith, as opposed to any of the more negative emotions; guilt, anger, remorse, etc. seems a much better way to go, because in reality, “stepping up and out,” doing the thing, speaking the truth that no one else seems to want to do, is in fact, “a fearful” thing, because we all want to be loved—to be accepted.
In John the Baptist’s day, he was calling out those “with means,” to share with those needing clothes and food—that of course, fits for us as well. He tells the tax-collectors “to exact no extra,” and that “soldiers should not bully.”
We, my friends, can add to, “doing the hard work,” in our lives by “speaking truth to power” in Church and State, demanding that those in both places do what they were “given that power” to do, serving and caring for others, especially the neediest among us. In my understanding of the work of the Thursday letter-writing group that Nancy informs us of every week, this is what they do. I believe that whenever “joy” brings us to a task, it goes better.
And finally, in this surface look at today’s Scriptures, I lift up David, known as the composer of the Psalms who is “crying out with joy,” so I would say, our mission as Jesus’ followers is clear—we are to be about joy!
Now, fine-tuning these Scriptures, let’s take a deeper look at “why” we should be joy-filled. The Latin word for “joy” is “Gaudete” and prior to the Second Vatican Council, we were very much a “Latin” Church in our liturgical language. With the “opening of windows and doors” that Pope John XXIII said he wanted to do, we “lost” Latin, actually by then, a dead language, as the Church’s main liturgical language, in deference to the individual languages of peoples throughout the world, even though today, in some places, there are those trying to once again elevate Latin.
We know that Jesus’ languages were Hebrew and Aramaic, and “joy” in Hebrew is “Simcha”—and perhaps as we look back more and more at the words of Jesus, rather than those of the “Roman” church, we might do well to re-name this Sunday, “Simcha Sunday” –all about joy—in fact “Simcha” has been used as a personal name for obvious reasons. Just a thought (changing the name of this feast) that I think the Church fathers won’t take me up on.(:
But more so, let’s look further, as to “why” we should be about “joy,” especially today, and really, throughout all of Advent. If we can leave behind the notion, really ill-conceived, that Jesus came, “to save us from our sins by dying on the cross,” than we can be open to a God who simply “loved us,” first and foremost, and who wants “only good and not bad” for us in this life.
In my previous ministry as a chaplain, I would many times hear from patients that they “didn’t believe in God.” When I asked them to tell me, “who God was for them,” it was often a “mean and vengeful God just waiting to pounce when they failed.” I could most assuredly tell them that I didn’t believe in that God either! Then I would remind them of who Jesus told us his Abba God was, in the stories of the “Good Shepherd” and the ”Prodigal Child”—stories that both depict a God who loves in an over-the-top way, and who will go to any length “to find us and bring us home.”
But if the terminology of “saving us” is meaningful in your life, then a more positive way to envision Jesus’ coming might be to see his life actions, his words, as showing us the “best ways” to live out our one, wonderful life, and in that way, he “saves” us from our human tendency to be less than we can be.
So my friends, the Scriptures today clearly tell us to be “people of joy,” to “fear not” to do what God, through Jesus is asking of us—the hard, at times, work of love, and remembering that this same God, “is in our midst,” always showing us the way, and comforting us in the ups and downs of life.
A final thought my friends comes from the words of John, the Baptist, that today’s reading doesn’t include, but are important for all of us, especially ministers and pastors, “He (meaning Jesus) must increase, while I (meaning John) must decrease.” In today’s gospel, John says that there is one coming whose sandal strap John is not worthy to loosen.”
The words spoken by John that he must “decrease” while Jesus must “increase,” clearly speak to the place we as followers of Jesus must keep. We, as John, must never get in the way of the message –all that we do should be about, “shedding more light on Jesus!” So there you have it—
Amen? Amen!