Saint John the Baptist came "to testify to the light." We rejoice in the Lord always because of this light that has entered into the darkness of the night through Christ our Lord. The world was plunged into darkness when our Lord died upon the cross, but this darkness could not prevail due to the light of the Resurrection. At the Easter Vigil this reality is pointed towards because the Mass begins in total darkness and from that darkness comes the light of a flame which spreads throughout the Church allowing light to triumph over the darkness. In Bethlehem our savior was born in the darkness of the night which signaled for us this great light that had entered into the world. From the Fall the world was cast into darkness, but from the coming of Christ the world would be restored to its proper light. It therefore is no mistake that Advent is celebrated at this time of the year because our days are short and the darkness comes early in the day, but with the coming of Christ we know that the light will overcome this darkness.
The season of Advent is about having Christian hope that no matter what is taking place in our life or world that it will be overcome by Christ's coming. No matter how difficult the burden that has been placed upon us in this life; it will be Christ who will come to take that yoke upon Himself. For many this time of year reflects a period of darkness possibly brought about from the loss of a loved one. We are reminded of Christmas memories long past and are forced to face the reality that comes with change. This is tough, but again it is Christ who testifies to the light and thus it is He alone who can heal us from the pain that we feel in our heart. We can attempt to fill that which is dark with many things, but that will never bring about true light. We must have a candle or a light in order to reverse the darkness. Christ is that great light that desires to come and set straight our path towards Him.
Therefore this third Sunday of Advent is often referred to as Guadete Sunday which is a Latin word for "rejoice." We are to "rejoice always" because this Sunday serves as a reminder that He is coming soon. As we have now moved throughout this Advent season for these past couple of weeks we are to see that the end is in sight. With this end in sight we are given small glimpses into what is to come with the joy of Christ's coming. The penitential character of the Advent season is relaxed on this day in order that we may rejoice with the reality of the coming of that great light into a world that has been touched by darkness. Through these relaxations we are able to see glimpses into what is to come with Christ's coming. For example flowers are not to be used throughout the Advent season, but today we are able to use a few flowers to decorate which shows how life springs up from that which has been left barren.
May we rejoice always because that which has been left barren will be restored to life by the coming light that is Christ. As we continue to move towards this light our parish will offer the perfect opportunity to enter into Christmas joy. This opportunity is our parish penance service in which nine priests will be present to hear confessions and thus to absolve sin. A lot of darkness and barrenness is found through the sins that we hold onto, but through confession our soul can be brought towards light and can be restored to life. We are not the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, and so I must ask why we allow the devil to so often fool us into believing that we are like the Blessed Mother and thus without sin. Each of us sin and enter into the darkness of it, but we do not have to be mastered by it because God desires to wrap us "with a robe of salvation" through the Sacrament of Confession. If we believe we have the right to receive Christ present in Holy Communion this day we should also realize that Confession is not just a suggestion for self help, but instead it is a must to be restored to the light of Christ.
Therefore I invite each of you to continue to rejoice at the Lord's coming. May we not be caught off guard by it, but instead be found ready by the setting straight of our path. It can seem like our life is too dark to bear at times, but again I invite you to continue to rejoice at the Lord's coming. That which is dark will be conquered by the light of Christ. The greatest place that darkness can be found is through our own sin because our sin is a rejection of God's love. We do not have to be content with this state in our life because the Sacrament of Confession heals the state of our soul; especially that which has been left for dead by the presence of mortal sin. I invite each of you to not run at the sight of the brightness that comes with Christ's coming, but instead to rejoice always in it as we head to Confession to be restored to the splendor of this light and are also given the grace to be protected from these temptations. May we indeed "rejoice always" as we continue to prepare for the coming light which will bring light into the darkness of our life.
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