3rd Sunday in Advent - Year B - Gaudete Sunday & 2023 St. Francis de Sales Christmas Concert
The third Sunday of Advent is called ‘Gaudete Sunday’ which means ‘Joy’ or ‘Rejoice’. The opening antiphon for this weekend’s liturgy asks us to “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say rejoice!”. Indeed the Lord is near and on our Advent Wreaths, we light the pink candle to mark this day of joy. Joy is the central message of our readings and prayers this Sunday, and indeed the whole of Advent and the celebration of Christ.
The first words that Mary hears when she is told that she is going to be the mother of Jesus are, ‘Rejoice, highly favoured one!’ Mary is to be filled with joy because God has called her by her name and her Son will be the long awaited Messiah. When she goes to see Elizabeth her cousin, she breaks into song, singing out loudly, ‘My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour’. Mary does not keep her good news or her joy to herself, she freely shares them with Elizabeth and the whole world. When the angels appeared to the shepherds, they heard this life-giving message, ‘Do not be afraid, I bring you news of great joy.’ The good news of Jesus’ birth is meant not only for the shepherds, it continues to be good news for each of us today.
Like Mary who shared her joy with Elizabeth, today each of us is asked to be a person of joy and we are asked to share our joy with others. There are many people, some of whom we may even know, who have little reason to be joyful at this time of the year. As Mary did with Elizabeth, may we follow her example and share our joy with all those we meet during these last few days of Advent. May we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.
In the spirit of joy, we are excited to share the live recordings from our recent St. Francis de Sales 2023 Christmas Concert entitled "O Come All Ye Faithful" featuring 16 of our favourite Advent and Christmas Carols. Choirs performing in this video include the:
SFDS Combined Choir
(featuring singers from all 5 of our Parish choirs)
Saturday 5pm Youth Choir
Sunday 8:30am Choir
Sunday 10:15am Choir
Sunday 7pm Choir
Video can be watched by clicking here or on the picture below:
