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Sunday 15 December 2024 Advent 3

What do you want for Christmas?

Zephaniah 3:14-18; Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 3:10-18

By Simon Wright

Roman Catholic Permanent Deacon, serving in the Adur Valley, West Sussex

Context: a parish with two churches and a chapel spread across eight miles, with one elderly congregation and two with younger families – ethnically diverse and economically mixed

Aim: to connect with as many people as possible in the congregation, exploring the difference between happiness and joy by comparing Christmas presents with Christmas gatherings

A RIDDLE

Like lots of people I have been thinking about what I want for Christmas, and I have decided that I much prefer presence to presents. Now I know what most of you are thinking, Simon has finally lost it, wearing a rose-pink frock, and talking in riddles. Well, I had better explain myself.

THE THEME OF REJOICING AND JOY

Today is Gaudete Sunday, and the theme of our Mass is Rejoice. Rejoice was the first word of our Mass, – for those who missed the Entrance Antiphon, here it is again: ‘Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice. Indeed, the Lord is near.’ Now rejoicing is different from having fun. Pope Francis spoke about the difference when he said, ‘A Christian is a person of joy. Jesus teaches us this, the Church teaches us this. What is this joy? Is it having fun? No: it is not the same. Fun is good, having fun is good. But joy is more, it is something else. It is something that does not come from short term economic reasons, from momentary reasons: it is something deeper. Fun, if we want to have fun all the time, in the end it becomes shallow, superficial, and also leads us to that state where we lack Christian wisdom, it makes us a little bit stupid, naïve. Joy is from God. It fills us from within. It is like an anointing of the Spirit. And this joy is the certainty that Jesus is with us and with the Father.’

 

JOY, BY ITS NATURE, MUST BE SHARED

Pope Francis continued: ‘Can we ‘bottle up’ this joy, in order to always have it with us? No, because if we keep this joy to ourselves, it will make us sick in the end, our hearts will grow old and wrinkled and our faces will no longer transmit that great joy, only nostalgia, melancholy which is not healthy. Sometimes these melancholy Christians faces have more in common with pickled peppers than the joy of having a beautiful life. Joy cannot be held at heel: it must be let go. Joy is a pilgrim virtue. It is a gift that walks, walks on the path of life, that walks with Jesus: preaching, proclaiming Jesus, proclaiming joy.’

THE RIDDLE EXPLAINED

So, why do I prefer presence to presents? The problem here is that you cannot see the spelling of the two words. Let me express my preference using different words. At Christmas I prefer being present with people rather than receiving gifts, and God being present with the people is the underlying theme of today’s Mass.

JOY IN ALL OUR READINGS

Remember the Entrance Antiphon, ‘Rejoice in the Lord always. Indeed, the Lord is near.’

In our first reading we heard – ‘Shout for joy, daughter of Zion, Israel, shout aloud! Rejoice, exult with all your heart,... The Lord, the king of Israel, is in your midst.’

In our Psalm what was the response? ‘Sing and shout for joy for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.’

In our second reading we heard – ‘I want you to be happy, always happy in the Lord; I repeat, what I want is your happiness … the Lord is very near.’ So, there is a concrete link between joy and God’s presence.

Now in our Gospel reading John the Baptist gives us examples of how to experience joy – lasting happiness. John says, ‘If anyone has two tunics, they must share with those who has none, and the one with something to eat must do the same.’

JOY AT CHRISTMAS

Sharing food, sharing what we have, with others brings joy. Yes, it is fun to give a gift but that is not sharing. Sharing involves a joint experience of the same thing and that is why I prefer presence – sharing something with people – over presents, mere trinkets in a box.

I am looking forward to being with everyone here in church on Christmas day, I am looking forward to sharing the joy of Jesus - Emanuel - God who is with us, and in addition we can make this Christmas very special by sharing what we have with those we love and by sharing what we have with those who need it, sharing brings joy and joy makes Jesus - Emanuel – present to the world.

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