Readings
for
14 December 03
Third Sunday in Advent
Gaudete Sunday
Today's First Reading is from The Book of Zephaniah beginning at the
3rd
Chapter and the 14th Verse (Zeph 3:14-18a)
Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O
Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of
Jerusalem! The LORD has taken away the judgments against you, he
has cast out your
enemies. The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; you shall fear
evil no more. On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: "Do not
fear, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak. The LORD, your God, is in
your midst, a warrior who gives victory; he
will rejoice over you with gladness, he will renew you in his love; he
will exult over you with loud singing as on a day of festival.
La Primera Lectura es del Libro de Sofonias, empezando en el 3mo
Capitulo, y el 14mo Verso (Sof 3:14-18a)
Regocíjate, hija de Sión, grita de
júbilo, Israel, alégrate goza de todo corazón,
Jerusalén. El Señor ha cancelado tu condena, ha expulsado
a tus enemigos. El Señor será el rey de Israel, en medio
de ti, y ya no temerás. Aquel día dirán a
Jerusalén: No temas, Sión, no desfallezcan tus manos. El
Señor tu Dios, en medio de ti, es un guerrero que salva. El se
goza y se complace en ti, te ama y se alegra con júbilo como en
día de fiesta.
Today's Song of Praise is taken from The Book of Isaiah: (Is
12:2-3,4,5-6)
R. Shout and sing praises:
for great among you is the Holy One of Israel.
Behold, God is my savior;
I will trust and be not afraid.
The Lord God is my strength and my praise,
and he has brought me to salvation.
With joy you will draw water
from the fountains of salvation.
R. Shout and sing praises: for great among you is the Holy One of
Israel.
Give thanks to the LORD, call his name;
make known his deeds
among the nations;
proclaim how exalted is his name.
R. Shout and sing praises: for great among you is the Holy One of
Israel.
Sing praises to the LORD for his glorious works;
let this be known in all the earth.
Shout and sing praises, O people of Zion,
for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel!
R. Shout and sing praises: for great among you is the Holy One of
Israel.
El Salmo Responsorial se toma del Libro del Isaias el Profeta:
(Is 12:2-3,4,5-6)
R.- Gritad jubilosos: "Que grande es en medio de ti el Santo
de Israel”.
El Señor es mi Dios y salvador;
confiaré y no temeré,
porque mi fuerza y mi poder es el Señor
él fue mi salvación.
Sacaréis aguas con gozo
e las fuentes de la salvación.
R.- Gritad jubilosos: "Que grande es en medio de ti el Santo
de Israel”.
Dad gracias al Señor,
invocad su nombre,
contad a los pueblos sus hazañas.
Proclamad que su nombre es excelso.
R.- Gritad jubilosos: "Que grande es en medio de ti el
Santo de Israel”.
Tañed para el Señor, que hizo proezas,
anunciad las a toda la tierra;
gritad jubilosos, habitantes de Sión:
"Qué grande es en medio de ti
el Santo de Israel."
R.- Gritad jubilosos: "Que grande es en medio de ti el
Santo de Israel”.
Today's Epistle is from the Letter of Paul to the Philippians,
beginning at the 4th Chapter, and the 4th Verse (Phil 4:4-7)
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say,
Rejoice. Let all men know your forbearance. The Lord is at
hand. Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer
and
supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to
God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep
your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Epistolo de la Carta del Apostolo San Pablo a los Filipcenses ,
empezando en el
Capitulo 4ro, y el Verso 4mo (Phil 1:4-7)
Estad siempre alegres en el Señor; os lo
repito, estad alegres. Que vuestra mesura la conozca todo el mundo. El
Señor está cerca. Nada os preocupe; sino que, en toda
ocasión, en la oración y suplica con acción de
gracias, vuestras peticiones sean presentadas a Dios. Y la paz de Dios,
que sobrepasa todo juicio, custodiará vuestros corazones y
vuestros pensamientos en Cristo Jesús.
+A Reading from the Gospel of Luke, beginning at the 3rd Chapter,
and the 10th Verse (Luke 3:10-18)
And the multitudes asked him, "What then shall
we do?"
And he answered them, "He who has two coats, let him
share with him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise."
Tax collectors also came to be baptized, and
said to him, "Teacher, what shall we do?" And he said to them,
"Collect no more than is appointed you."
Soldiers also asked him, "And we, what shall
we do?" And he said to
them, "Rob no one by violence or by false accusation, and be content
with your wages."
As the people were in expectation,
and all men questioned in their hearts concerning John, whether perhaps
he were the Christ,
John answered them all, "I baptize
you with water; but he who is mightier than I is coming, the thong of
whose sandals I am not worthy to untie; he will baptize you with the
Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in
his hand, to clear his threshing floor, and to gather the wheat into
his granary, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire."
So, with many other exhortations, he preached good
news to the people.
+Lectura del Santo Evangelio según San Lucas, empezando en el
3mo Capitulo, y el 1ro Verso (Lucas 3:10-18)
En aquel tiempo, la gente preguntó a Juan:
-- ¿Entonces, qué hacemos?
Él contestó:
-- El que tenga dos túnicas, que se las reparta con el que no
tiene; y el que tenga comida, haga lo mismo.
Vinieron también a bautizarse unos publicanos, y le preguntaron:
-- Maestro, ¿qué hacemos nosotros?
Él les contestó:
-- No exijáis más de lo establecido.
Unos militares le preguntaron:
-- ¿Qué hacemos nosotros?
Él les contestó:
-- No hagáis extorsión a nadie, ni os aprovechéis
con denuncias, sino contentaos con la paga.
El pueblo estaba en expectación y todos se preguntaban si no
sería Juan el Mesías; él tomó la palabra y
dijo a todos:
-- Yo os bautizo con agua; pero viene el que puede más que yo, y
no merezco desatarle la correa de sus zaatas. El os bautizará
con Espíritu Santo y fuego: tiene en la mano la horca para
aventar la parva y reunir el trigo en el granero y quemar la paja en
una hoguera que no se apaga.
Añadiendo otras muchas cosas exhortaba al pueblo y les anunciaba
la Buena Noticia.
(In Russian:)
Продолжение Евангелия Луки -- начинается
в 10-ом главом и в 18-ом стыxом
И спрашивал
его народ: что же нам
делать?
Он сказал им в
ответ: у кого две одежды,
тот дай неимущему, и
у кого есть пища, делай
то же.
Пришли и мытари
креститься, и сказали ему:
учитель! что нам
делать?
Он отвечал им:
ничего не требуйте более
определенного вам.
Спрашивали
его также и воины: а
нам что делать?
И сказал
им: никого не обижайте,
не клевещите, и довольствуйтесь
своим жалованьем.
Когда же народ
был в ожидании, и все
помышляли в сердцах
своих об Иоанне,
не Христос ли он, --
Иоанн всем
отвечал: я крещу вас водою,
но идёт Сильнейший меня, у
Которого я
недостоин развязать ремень
обуви; Он будет
крестить вас Духом Святым
и
огнем.
Лопата Его в
руке Его, и Он очистит
гумно Свое и соберет
пшеницу в житницу Свою,
а солому сожжет огнем неугасимым.
Многое и другое
благовествовал он народу, поучая
его.
Sermon
for
14 December 2003
Third Sunday in Advent
Gaudete Sunday
Today is "Gaudete" Sunday -- from the
Latin word for
"Rejoice that begins the Introit in today's Mass:
INTROIT: Phil. 4:4
Gaudete in Domino semper: iterum dico gaudete. . .
Rejoice in the Lord always: again I say, rejoice. . .
We wear Rose (pink) colored vestments today, and the
Advent candle for this week is also pink. This has been part of
the Liturgical Year since the time of Pope Gregory the Great, about 600
A.D.
Advent is a solemn time -- a time to examine
ourselves and the world, a time to think upon the coming of God into
the world, a time of quiet. Just as, in the middle of Lent, there
is an explosion of rejoicing (and again Rose vestments :) on Laetare
Sunday, we here rejoice in the swiftly-approaching Incarnation.
Indeed, all of today's readings speak of rejoicing.
The Prophet Zephaniah exhorts:
"Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O
Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of
Jerusalem! The LORD, your God, is in
your midst. . . he
will rejoice over you with gladness, he will renew you in his love; he
will exult over you with loud singing as on a day of festival."
Isaiah, the sometimes gloomy Prophet of the Coming
of the Messiah also sings in Praise:
"Sing praises to the LORD for his glorious works;
let this be known in all the earth.
Shout and sing praises, O people of Zion,
for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel!"
St Paul quotes Zephaniah, and says:
"The Lord is at hand."
And John the Baptist tells us what this rejoicing is
all about:
"I baptize
you with water; but he who is mightier than I is coming, the thong of
whose sandals I am not worthy to untie; he will baptize you with the
Holy Spirit and with fire. "
". . . and with fire."
Fire is the symbol of inspiration (the Spirit coming
in), and at Pentecost we see in Acts 2:2-4:
"And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a
rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were
sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of
fire, and it sat upon each of them.And they were all filled with the
Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues . . ."
The mystical saints -- Teresa of Avila, and John of
the Cross -- speak of their experiences as being bathed in fire, and
indeed, to such as we -- confined in our own skins, going about our
day-to-day lives -- suddenly gaining the vison of the unveiled glory of
God is going to feel like being swept up and whirled into a raging
river of fire and light.
There is that spirit within us that yearns for that
fire, yearns for the light -- and that Light is what comes "into Flesh"
at the end of this Advent season. Let us pray then, that we may
be ready to be hurled and burned, and inspired . . .
In the
Name of the Father +
And of the Son +
And of the Holy
Spirit +
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