Gospel: Gaudete Sunday

Today is the Third Sunday of Advent, and the Gospel reading for today's Eucharistic celebration will be lifted from the Gospel according to St John (tap here for the complete Mass readings from USCCB).

This Sunday's Gospel invites us to continue our reflection on the person and mission of St John the Baptist. Today we depart from the Gospel of St Mark and read a selection from the Gospel of St John.

The Gospel for today combines a brief passage from the prologue to St John's Gospel with a report about St John the Baptist. As in St Mark's Gospel, the Gospel of St John has no birth narrative. Instead, St John's Gospel begins with a theological reflection that has come to be called the "prologue." This prologue places the story of Jesus in its cosmological framework. It speaks of Jesus' existence with God since the beginning of time. In St John's Gospel, Jesus is presented as the fulfillment of the Old Testament and the culmination of the Word, the light that is coming into the world's darkness.

Following this prologue, St John the Evangelist reports on the ministry of St John the Baptist. We learn in this brief reading about the attention that St John the Baptist received from the Jewish authorities.

Messengers from the Jewish priests, the Levites and the Pharisees question St John the Baptist about his identity and the meaning of the baptisms that he is performing. St John the Evangelist's Gospel uses these questions to establish the relationship between Jesus and St John the Baptist. St John is not the Messiah, nor is he Elijah or the Prophet. The Jewish leaders are looking for the literal signs found in Scriptures about the coming of the Messiah. In St John the Baptist's denials, we bear echoes of the kind of messianic expectations that were common in first-century Palestine.

The only affirmative response that St John the Baptist gives is when he quotes the prophet Isaiah, as the voice of one calling from the desert to prepare the way of the Lord. Upon answering the next question, St John announces that the savior they seek is already among them, but as yet unrecognized. St John's response highlights for us an important Advent theme: Jesus has already come into the world as savior. During Advent, we pray that we will be able to recognize the presence of Jesus in our midst. Advent also reminds us that Jesus will literally come again to fulfill the promise of salvation. We pray that we will continue to be watchful as we anticipate that great day.

The third Sunday of Advent is also called Gaudete Sunday, where the rose (pink) candle on the Advent wreath will be lit. Gaudete, as a Latin word which means "rejoice," is taken from the entrance antiphon for the Sunday's Mass. This theme is echoed in today's second reading from St Paul's First Letter to the Thessalonians. It is a reminder that Advent is a season of joy because our salvation is already at hand.

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