III Sunday -Advent: Is 61: 1-2, 10-11;
1 Thes 5: 16-24; Jn 1: 6-8, 19-28
Introduction: Today is third Sunday during advent. While the first
two Sundays of the Advent Season draw our attention to the eschatological
coming of the Lord, the third Sunday focuses our attention much more on the
Lord already present among us. This Sunday is known as 'Gaudete (Rejoice!)
Sunday'. The Mass formularies today
still retain the call to 'rejoice', and the source and cause of that
rejoicing is clearly the presence of God in our midst. Our joy gets more and
more intense as we advance in our journey of faith. And so, we light the
rose colored candle, the 3rd in the series in the Advent wreath, and
use rose vestments symbolizing our hope and our joy as we await the coming of our
Savior at Christmas. We rejoice because the day of salvation is near.
Story: Father
Ernest gives a beautiful story. A certain monastery discovered that it was
going through a crisis. Some of the monks left, no new candidates joined them,
and people were no longer coming for prayer and consultation as they used to.
The few monks that remained were becoming old and depressed and bitter in their
relationship with one another. The abbot heard about a holy man, a hermit
living alone in the woods and decided to consult him. He told the hermit how
the monastery had dwindled and diminished and now looks like a skeleton of what
it used to be. Only seven old monks remained. The hermit told the abbot that he
has a secret for him. One of the monks now living in his monastery is actually
the Messiah, but he is living in such a way that no one could recognize him.
With this
revelation the abbot goes back to his monastery, summons a community meeting
and recounts what the holy hermit told him. The aging monks look at each other
in unbelief, trying to discern who among them could be the Christ. Could it be
Brother Mark who prays all the time? But he has this holier-than-thou attitude
toward others. Could it be Bother Joseph who is always ready to help? But he is
always eating and drinking and cannot fast. The abbot reminded them that the
Messiah has adopted some bad habits as a way of camouflaging his real identity.
This only made them more confused and they could not make a headway figuring
out who was the Christ among them. At the end of the meeting what each one of
the monks knew for sure was that any of the monks, excepting himself, could be
the Christ.
From that day,
however, the monks began to treat one another with greater respect and
humility, knowing that the person they are speaking to could be the very
Christ. They began to show more love for one another, their common life became
more brotherly and their common prayer more fervent. Slowly people began to
take notice of the new spirit in the monastery and began coming back for
retreats and spiritual direction. Word began to spread and, before you know it,
candidates began to show up and the monastery began to grow again in number as
the monks grew in zeal and holiness. All this because a man of God drew their
attention to the truth that Christ was living in their midst as one of them.
Exegesis:
In today’s gospel John the Baptist tries to announce the same powerful message
to the Jews of his time who were anxiously waiting for the coming of the
Messiah. John tells them: “Among you stands one whom you do not know, the
one who is coming after me; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandal”
(John 1:26-27).
Practical Applications: Are we now better able to recognize Christ in the
persons of the ordinary men and women in our midst together with their
unimpressive attitudes, habits and appearances?
Introduction: Third Sunday of Advent
Message: John witnesses to one who is to come, one far
mightier than he, one who will proclaim freedom and deliverance from sin and death. As we await his coming again in glory, let us
join with Mary in singing the praises of God.
No comments:
Post a Comment