Exiit qui seminat

As we have done for the past several years in Advent and Lent, instead of singing Opening and Communion Hymns, we instead sing the Entrance and Communion Antiphons. So you may be asking, "What is an antiphon?" The short answer is that the Church provides scripture passages in addition to the readings from Mass. Antiphons are not a new development in terms of the liturgy. In fact antiphons have been an essential part of the Mass since the earliest centuries of Christianity.  These texts are meant to be sung and help give the singer (and the listener) added reflection on what we celebrate as a community of faith. As we celebrate the 3rd Sunday of Advent, Gaudete Sunday, the Entrance Antiphon is on full display. It comes from the 4th chapter of St. Paul's Letter to the Philippians: "Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice! Your kindness should be known to all. The Lord is near. Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God." We rejoice that the Lord is near. We rejoice that next Sunday, because of how the calendar falls, we not only celebrate the 4th Sunday of Advent, but we also begin our celebration of Christmas on Sunday afternoon. We manifest our charity and kindness when we give to the poor during this season and help struggling families share in the joy of the Christ Child. In the midst of the anxiety that often accompanies the secular Christmas season, we have an opportunity to pray and to grow in faith with our Advent Mission on December 18-21. Most of all, we give thanks for the gift of our Lord, not just in our celebration of Christmas, but also in the gift of the Eucharist, the great sacrament in which God Himself nourishes our very souls. The question that is begged of us as the Advent season rushes to a close, "What are the things that give our souls joy?" How do we rejoice heartily in the Lord for our God is the joy of our soul? Let us spiritually prepare in these next 8 days for the Lord to come into our hearts just as He entered into the world as a Babe in Bethlehem.