Thursday, December 8, 2022

Friends,

This Sunday, we celebrate the Third Sunday of Advent, which is also known as Gaudete Sunday or “Rejoice Sunday.” In our Advent wreaths, we light the pink candle which is meant to shake us into remembering that Advent and Christmas are seasons of JOY. We recognize that because God entered the brokenness of this world, we are meant to be joyful people! What an amazing and joyous revelation! God was born into our world to redeem it… to redeem US! That’s cause for great joy!

But before you tune me out because it sounds like I’m forcing you to feel an emotion, hear me out…

Joy isn’t just an emotion. Joy isn’t a passing feeling based on our circumstances. It’s not like sadness or loneliness or fear or excitement or contentment or happiness.

Joy is an outward expression of an inward conviction. It’s a response to God’s gift. In other words, joy is something that we choose to exhibit because of something we know deep in our souls. We can choose joy because we know that “the light shines in the darkness and the darkness shall not overcome it.” We can choose joy because we know that God seeks us out at every moment and holds us in love at every moment. Even when we don’t feel it.

Take our readings for this Sunday as the prime example of how joy is much more than a feeling. The first reading is from Isaiah again. In a hopeful proclamation of what God can do, Isaiah proclaims: “The desert and the parched land will exult; the steppe will rejoice and bloom. They will bloom with abundant flowers, and rejoice with joyful song.”

Where does joy come from in this reading? Joy comes from impossible situations: The desert and the parched land will exult. The desert steppe will rejoice and bloom. Joy wasn’t a feeling that the desert had to fake or muster up on its own. It wasn’t an emotion that the dry and weary lands randomly felt.

Joy is something that can burst forth from an impossible situation by the power of God.

So, this Sunday – this whole Advent and Christmas season – I challenge you to choose joy wherever you are. Choose to accept the joy that God gives you even in impossible situations. Because Isaiah reminds us that when God comes, “then will the eyes of the blind be opened, the ears of the deaf be cleared; then will the lame leap like a stag, then the tongue of the mute will sing.” And in the Gospel for this Sunday, John the Baptist sends someone to ask about Jesus: “Are you the guy we’ve been waiting for? The Messiah?”

And what does Jesus say in reply? “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them.”

Translation: “The desert is blooming with joyful flowers. The parched land is rejoicing. Because the Lord has come… I have come.”

Don’t sit back and be discouraged when you don’t feel joyful. Don’t pretend that joy is something you have to manufacture on your own through friendships or Instagram aesthetics or extracurriculars. Let this Gaudete Sunday be your reminder that joy comes from the power and presence of God. Let it be your reminder that we don’t just feel joy; we choose to accept the joy that comes with and from God.

And when you don’t feel strong enough to choose joy? Let yourself be the desert land and let God make flowers bloom and sing for joy in your heart.

…

Lastly, today is also the feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary! We believe that even before the Mother of Jesus was born, God preserved her from the brokenness of sin. From her conception in her own mother’s womb, Mary was sinless. And when that moment came, as a young teenager, for the angel Gabriel to announce the birth of Jesus, Mary chose joy. Amid any fear and anxiety she may have felt, she chose to trust that the Lord who makes flowers bloom in the desert, could make her body into a fitting place for the Son of God to be born into the world. Yet another example of how even in impossible situations, God gives us gifts we could never have imagined.

To celebrate this joyful feast day, join us at St. Mary’s for Mass tonight! Mass is at 7:00 pm in the church. Come and experience God’s joy!

Enter into Advent with the COR Spotify Playlist!

TOMORROW:

Help decorate the church

for Candlelight Adoration!

We need help decorating the church!

Come anytime between 5:30 and 6:00 tomorrow to help set up and light candles all around the Church of St. Mary! Then stick around for adoration at 7:00. (service hours available, if you need them)

COR is hosting a Candlelight Adoration for high schoolers and all other members of the St. Mary's/Lake Forest communities! Come to the Church of St. Mary on Friday, December 9 for an hour of Eucharistic Adoration by candlelight. The lights will be dimmed and the whole church will be lit up with candles!

We'll have opportunities for quiet prayer, praise and worship songs, and the chance to light your own candle for a prayer intention. Afterwards, we'll have hot chocolate and cookies in the Parish Community Room (downstairs in the church). Come take a break from finals studying and enjoy this beautiful night of candlelight adoration!

A Challenge For You:

If you're reading this, take a finals studying break

this Sunday at the COR Christmas Party!

Here's your challenge: bring two people with you.

Wear your best Christmas sweater and come for

fun games, food, and lots of Christmas cheer!

Please RSVP for COR Christmas Movie Night!

After the craziness of finals, enjoy a chill Christmas-themed movie night with cookies and hot chocolate at the Parish Center! Bring a friend and hang out with others while watching a Christmas classic. RSVP and vote for the movie by clicking the image below!