20191221
MISSIONARIES
OF JOY
21 December,
2019, Saturday, 3rd Week of Advent
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Violet.
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First reading
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Song of Songs 2:8-14 ©
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See how my Beloved comes, leaping on the mountains
I
hear my Beloved.
See
how he comes
leaping
on the mountains,
bounding
over the hills.
My
Beloved is like a gazelle,
like
a young stag.
See
where he stands
behind
our wall.
He
looks in at the window,
he
peers through the lattice.
My
Beloved lifts up his voice,
he
says to me,
‘Come
then, my love,
my
lovely one, come.
For
see, winter is past,
the
rains are over and gone.
The
flowers appear on the earth.
The
season of glad songs has come,
the
cooing of the turtledove
is
heard in our land.
The
fig tree is forming its first figs
and
the blossoming vines give out their fragrance.
Come
then, my love,
my
lovely one, come.
My
dove, hiding in the clefts of the rock,
in
the coverts of the cliff,
show
me your face,
let
me hear your voice;
for
your voice is sweet
and
your face is beautiful.’
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm 32(33):2-3,11-12,20-21 ©
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Ring
out your joy to the Lord, O you just; O sing him a song that is new.
Give
thanks to the Lord upon the harp,
with
a ten-stringed lute sing him songs.
O
sing him a song that is new,
play
loudly, with all your skill.
Ring
out your joy to the Lord, O you just; O sing him a song that is new.
His
own designs shall stand for ever,
the
plans of his heart from age to age.
They
are happy, whose God is the Lord,
the
people he has chosen as his own.
Ring
out your joy to the Lord, O you just; O sing him a song that is new.
Our
soul is waiting for the Lord.
The
Lord is our help and our shield.
In
him do our hearts find joy.
We
trust in his holy name.
Ring
out your joy to the Lord, O you just; O sing him a song that is new.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Alleluia,
alleluia!
Key
of David, who open the gates of the eternal kingdom,
come
to liberate from prison
the
captive who lives in darkness.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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Alleluia,
alleluia!
Emmanuel,
our
king and lawgiver,
come
and save us,
Lord
our God.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Luke 1:39-45 ©
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Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord?
Mary set out and
went as quickly as she could to a town in the hill country of Judah. She went
into Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. Now as soon as Elizabeth heard
Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the
Holy Spirit. She gave a loud cry and said, ‘Of all women you are the most
blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honoured with a
visit from the mother of my Lord? For the moment your greeting reached my ears,
the child in my womb leapt for joy. Yes, blessed is she who believed that the
promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.’
MISSIONARIES OF
JOY
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ Song 2:8-14 or Zep 3:14-18a; Ps 33; Luke 1:39-45 ]
As we approach the
coming of Christ, are we joyful in welcoming His birth? The theme of joy is prevalent in
today’s scripture readings. Indeed, the gospel is a gospel of joy.
When the Lord was born, the angels told the shepherds, “Do not be afraid; for
see – I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you
is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the
Lord.” (Lk 2:10)
Where does this joy come
from? Firstly, the joy comes from the anticipation of meeting our
beloved. In the first
reading from the book of Song of Songs, we read, “I hear my Beloved. See
how he comes leaping on the mountains, bounding over the hills. My Beloved is
like a gazelle, like a young stag. See where he stands behind our wall. He
looks in at the window, he peers through the lattice.” Indeed, when we
are expecting our loved ones to return home, or for a dinner with us, we are
always filled with the joy of expectation. The waiting is as joyful as
the meeting. So too, we will be filled with joy only if Jesus is
our beloved. Unless, we have fallen in love with Jesus, Christmas will
not bring us the great joy of welcoming our Lord.
Alas, many of us do not
have a place in our hearts for Jesus.
Christ is far away from our minds and hearts because we are too preoccupied
with the affairs of the world. We are absorbed with the daily struggles
of life, whether it is taking care of our family, our children and elderly, the
challenges and demands at our work place, the anxieties of our financial and
material needs, our health and most of all, the contentious and difficult task
of managing relationships at all levels. Above all, what hinders us from
welcoming our Lord with joy is our sins. Indeed, like the lover, we are
“hiding in the clefts of the rock, in the coverts of the cliff” because of the
shame of our sins. We dare not meet the Lord and our loved ones when we
have betrayed them and disappointed them. This, too, was the case of the
Israelites in exile. They were left to their sins and the consequences of
their sins because they rebelled against the Word of God.
Secondly, within this
context, the scripture readings speak of the joy of forgiveness. This was what the Prophet Zephaniah
said to the people, “Shout for joy, daughter of Zion, Israel, shout
aloud! Rejoice, exult with all your heart, daughter of Jerusalem! The Lord has
repealed your sentence; he has driven your enemies away. Zion, have no fear, do
not let your hands fall limp.” Indeed, we do not have to hide anymore
because the Lord has taken away our shame. He has rescinded the
punishment that we deserve. He has set us free from our enemies. “The
Lord your God is in your midst, a victorious warrior. He will exult with joy
over you, he will renew you by his love; he will dance with shouts of joy for
you as on a day of festival.” Christ who is our Teacher and
deliverer will overcome sins and destroy death forever. “For he must
reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to
be destroyed is death.” (1 Cor 15:25f)
With Christ, we know our
sins our forgiven. We can avail ourselves of this expectant joy if only
we have the humility to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Unfortunately, our pride prevents us from
acknowledging our sins and confessing them humbly to God. We want to keep
our sins to ourselves, which is what the devil is asking of us. So long
as we do not confess our sins, the sins will have a hold over us and we will
not find peace because the conscience has no rest in our hearts. But if
we are courageous and humble enough to articulate our sins and bring them to
light, we will be set free. There is no better way to share in this
anticipatory joy of welcoming Christ than to turn to the Lord and receive His
forgiveness in the sacrament of reconciliation.
Thirdly, joy comes when
we encounter the Lord hidden in our fellowmen. In the gospel, we have Mary who “set out
at that time and went as quickly as she could to a town in the hill country of
Judah.” Mary had just received the announcement that she would be the
mother of the Saviour. Instead of dwelling and relishing the glory of
being the mother of the Saviour, her first thought was that her cousin,
Elizabeth, was pregnant in her old age, and therefore needed help. And so
with haste because of the joy in her heart for Elizabeth’s pregnancy, she “went
into Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. Now as soon as Elizabeth heard
Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the
Holy Spirit.” In and through Mary, Elizabeth’s child in her womb leapt
for joy because he encountered the presence of the Lord in Mary’s womb.
So much so, Elizabeth “gave a loud cry and said, ‘Of all women you are the most
blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honoured with a
visit from the mother of my Lord? For the moment your greeting reached my ears,
the child in my womb leapt for joy.”
All these three
instances give us great joy, whether it is the closeness of the Lord, His
coming or His presence.
Indeed, knowing that the Lord is in our midst gives us the security and joy
that we are all looking for. When the Lord is with us or in our midst, we
can be confident that He will see us through. It is just like being in
the arms of our parents when we were little children or in the arms of our
loved ones when we feel fearful, lonely and misunderstood. The presence
of our loved ones will give us the strength to persevere in times of trial and
difficulty. This is what the book of Songs says, “My Beloved lifts up his
voice, he says to me, ‘Come then, my love, my lovely one, come. For see, winter
is past, the rains are over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth. The
season of glad songs has come, the cooing of the turtledove is heard in our
land. The fig tree is forming its first figs and the blossoming vines give out
their fragrance.” When the Lord is with us, “we are more than conquerors
through him who loved us.” (Rom 8:37)
Consequently, if we want
to enter into the joy of the Lord, we must first be recipients of this joy by
receiving the Lord in prayer. Elizabeth said to Mary, “Yes, blessed is she who
believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.” We
must make time for contemplation and prayer because the Lord is coming to us in
the silence of our hearts. So long as we are running around chasing after
the things of this world, we will not be able to find peace but only anxiety
and fear. That is why, no matter how rich or powerful we are, we are
always insecure in life, worrying who will take our wealth and position.
We must allow the Lord to dwell in our hearts.
Secondly, we must become
bearers of God’s joy and love. Mary did not keep the joy of divine
motherhood to herself. She
was selfless and never thought of her position or her privileges. She was
always concerned about the needs of others, whether it was Elizabeth in this
instance, or the wedding couple at Cana. Mary was always sensitive and
spontaneous when it came to helping people. Mary did not simply carry
Jesus in her womb but in truth she carried Jesus in her heart. This
explains why Mary was so full of grace and her presence brought the presence of
God as well. Her presence helped others to encounter the Lord in and
through her.
We, too, if we want to
share her joy and have our joy increased, we must reach out to others. By caring for the poor, the
abandoned, the sick, underprivileged and elderly, we bring Jesus to them.
In the process, as we share our love and joy with them, we receive the joy that
they give to us. Our joy is multiplied whenever we share that
joy. This was what Mary did. In sharing the joy of Elizabeth, she
in turn came to share her joy of bearing Jesus, the Mother of her Savior.
So let us be conscious that we are called to be bringers of joy, missionaries
of joy, and teachers of joy in our daily life, whether at school, office, home
or community. Are we a joy and a blessing to those whom we meet and those
who know us, or are we a pain and a curse to those whom we meet each day?
Let the joy of Christ radiate from our hearts, giving hope, love and blessing
to all we meet each day.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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