Third Sunday of Advent
Third Sunday of Advent
“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves” (Mt 11:28-29). The Lord invites us to find peace and joy in Him this Sabbath as we set aside time to worship and rest.
PREPARE
“Remember the sabbath day—keep it holy. Six days you may labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath of the LORD your God.”
Sabbath comes from the Hebrew word “Shabbat”, which literally means “to stop.” Keeping holy the Sabbath is not just a commandment, but an invitation. An invitation from the Lord to stop our work, stop our worrying, stop our striving. An opportunity to fid rest and to be renewed. A chance to refocus on the things that truly matter - the Lord, family, community. In our culture, Sunday has become a day to “catch up” on everything that didn’t get done during the week, and any time left over is often seen as an opportunity just to “get ahead” for next week. But we Christians have a chance now to remember what it means to keep the Sabbath. During this pandemic the Lord is calling us back to Himself, offering us a chance to reclaim the gift of the Sabbath, reminding us again what it means to “keep it holy.”
A basic principle for observing the Sabbath is only to do things that can be considered “rest” or “worship”. Here are a few ideas to consider to begin more to enter into the Sabbath. Maybe pick just one thing to focus on this Sunday, then next Sunday keep that practice in addition to a second one. And then the next Sunday add a third, to slowly over time begin to enter into this great gift of the Sabbath more and more.
Keep the Lord at the center - read the Mass readings ahead of time, participate in Mass, make more time for prayer, spend some extra time in silence focusing on the Lord
Try not to work - resist the urge to check your email, or catch up on a few things, and leave it for Monday
Plan ahead - take care of what needs to be done before Sunday, so plan the rest of your week to make sure you get the laundry done, have gone grocery shopping, etc.so you don’t have to do any of it on Sunday
Spend the day “screen free” - try to stay off social media, internet news, and your phone as much as possible. If you can’t make it the whole day try to go for at least a few hours
Be intentional with others - if you live with others (ie. family, roommates), is there something you can do together like play a game or go on a hike? If you live alone, can you reach out to a good friend and catch up?
Leisure, not entertainment - try to do things that are life giving; binge-watching a favorite show or playing video games for hours rarely leaves anyone with a new zeal for life. Read a good book, go on a long walk, develop a hobby.
PARTICIPATE
“Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (Mt 18:20). Each Sunday we are called to “keep holy the Sabbath” and although that may look different for right now we will still come together as a St. Ann community through the gift of technology.
MASS READINGS
GIVING
Take a few minutes to give to St. Ann Parish. Please give generously and sacrificially as an act of faith during these difficult times. You can give online:
After giving, offer ways to be generous of your whole self during this trying time for our world.
“Each must do as already determined without sadness or compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. Moreover, God is able to make every grace abundant for you, so that in all things, always having all you need, you may have an abundance for every good work.”
PROCESS
“My soul rejoices in my God.” (Isaiah 61:10); “My soul magnifies the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my Savior” (Luke 1:46-47)
Have you been able to experience joy this Advent? It can be so easy for us to focus only on the negative things, as we observe life through the microscope of our minds. Sometimes it seems that all we can focus on under the microscope lately is the disease of the present. Ever before us is all that has been lost, the ways things have changed, the dissatisfaction with the current situation. But we can choose what we focus on, even in times of challenge and struggle. Where we place our attention can either lead to encouragement or consternation, to joy at the moment, or distress at the present.
To help us cultivate our sense of joy, we can look to Mary, the mother of Jesus, whom we join as we sing the Magnificat (in the responsorial-psalm). Mary is pregnant with Jesus, by the power of the Holy Spirit. Her cousin Elizabeth, whom she is visiting, is pregnant with John the Baptist. John leaps for joy in the womb of Elizabeth at the presence of Jesus in the womb of Mary, and in an explosive response of joy, Mary tells Elizabeth, “My soul magnifies the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my Savior” (Lk 1:46-47).
In our Gospel, we encounter John the Baptist, the last great prophet, who announces the coming of the Messiah. Away from the commotion, out in the wilderness, John is more conscious of the promptings of the Holy Spirit, helping him to perceive the truth that Jesus is Emmanuel, “God with us”. He is a living encouragement for us to do the same, to “make straight the way of the Lord” (Jn 1:23), which is so often overgrown with a tangle of voices and viewpoints which obscure our focus. We are encouraged during this time of Advent to withdraw from the world in some way to be able to be more aware of the presence of God, and to be able to recognize Him when He shows up in our life, which often happens in subtle ways. Our increased attention to God’s subtle action in us allows us to rejoice in His presence and, like John the Baptist, to point Him out as the source of joy to others: “He came for testimony, to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him” (Jn 1:7).
With the example of John the Baptist in mind, we come back to Mary and notice that she could have easily focused on the struggles of her current circumstances, full of uncertainty, and the fears about her future as she traveled to visit her cousin Elizabeth. Acknowledging God's goodness to her, Mary chose to focus on His greatness instead of her anxieties. The words of Mary’s song of praise contain real wisdom for awakening greater joy in our own life. Mary says that her “spirit”–all that she is–“rejoices in God” her “savior” (Lk 1:47). Where does such joy come from? How does this happen to her? She lets us know that it is because her “soul magnifies the Lord” (Lk 1:46). Mary is flooded with joy because she is “magnifying”, or zooming in, on the work and presence of God at the present moment.
There is, without a doubt, a lot of distraction from the goodness of God in our world today, and it is easy to allow ourselves to be swept along by it and focus on, almost exclusively, what seems to be inevitable chaos and doom. Mary’s situation was not ideal, but despite all that, she remembered the joy of the Savior by focusing on and pondering His ways. Within this time of advent, we are invited to take up Mary’s disposition, and refocus the eyes of our hearts on the Savior, who alone brings an unshakeable and lasting joy. Then we can live the words we hear from St. Paul: “Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thess 5:16-18).
PRACTICE
The first reading speaks powerfully of the mission to spread joy to others, not just in word but through concrete actions. Find one way this week to spread joy to someone else. It could be sending a card to someone in prison. It could be making a phone call to someone you think might be lonely. It could be anonymously paying for the coffee of the customer behind you. Choose one specific way to bring joy to someone else this week.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Think about how you can continue to reflect on God’s word to you this week, and how you can invite others into the conversation. You can use the questions below for personal reflection, or to grow with others. Be creative! You could consider gathering with friends and family, or starting a group text, or a group FaceTime, to discuss the questions below.
What stands out to you from the readings this week? What might God be speaking to you at this time?
Were you able to take any time last week to reflect on God’s action in salvation history or in your own personal history? If so, did you have any thoughts or insights on that?
As we light the pink candle this week for Advent the theme is about joy! Do you see much joy in the world today? What about in your own life: are you experiencing much joy?
Is there a difference between joy and happiness? If so, how would you explain the difference? If not, how are they similar?
What is the kind of joy you want? Pause for a moment and reflect on what brings you joy; the real joy that has substance, the sort of joy that lingers in the memory years later.
In the Catholic devotion of the Rosary there are different sets of “mysteries” (or events in the life of Jesus) that you are invited to reflect on as you pray. What about each situation in the Joyful Mysteries do you think would have been hard or contained challenges? Why do you think they are still called “joyful”? The five events of the Joyful Mysteries are:
the Annunciation (when the angel Gabriel comes to announce to Mary that she has been chosen to be the mother of the Messiah)
the Visitation (when Mary travels to visit her cousin Elizabeth who is also pregnant)
the Birth of Jesus
the Presentation (when the infant Jesus is presented at the temple)
the Finding of Jesus in the Temple (when at the age of 12 Jesus was lost for three days before being found in the temple)
Can you think of a time when you were able to find joy even in the midst of challenge or suffering?
What are ways this week that you can “rejoice always”?
What are ways this week that you can spread joy to others?
KIDS
ACTIVITY
Find a candle in your home. Turn off all the lights in the room and light the candle. Talk about how much light that one candle makes in the darkness. If you have more candles, light more and see how the light overcomes the darkness around it.
CONNECTION
In this Sunday’s Gospel we hear again about how John the Baptist was baptizing and preparing the way for Jesus. The Gospel says that John the Baptist “came to testify to the light.” Jesus, The Light of the World, is coming and we are called to testify, or be witnesses, to the light just like John the Baptist.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
What does light do for us in our everyday lives? How is Jesus like light?
What does the word ‘witness’ mean? How was John the Baptist a witness to Jesus?
How can we be witnesses to Jesus? What is one thing you can do this week to be a witness to Jesus?