A number of years ago, young college student was working as an intern at his college’s Museum of Natural History. One day while working at the cash register in the gift shop, he saw an elderly couple come in with a little girl in a wheelchair. As he looked more closely at this girl, he saw that she was kind of perched on her chair. The student realized that she had no arms or legs, just a head, neck and torso. She was wearing a little white dress with red polka dots. As the couple wheeled her up to the checkout counter, he turned his head toward the girl and gave her a wink. Meanwhile, he took the money from her grandparents and looked back at the girl, who was giving him the cutest, largest smile he had ever seen. All of a sudden her handicap was gone and all that the college student saw was this beautiful girl, whose smile just melted him and almost instantly gave him a completely new sense of what life is all about. She took him from an unhappy college student and brought him into her world; a world of smiles, love and warmth. With the lighting of the third rose candle of the Advent Wreath among the pink candles and the priest wearing the rose vestments, we are reminded that we are called to live with joy in our world of sorrows and pain.
Today is Gaudete Sunday because today’s Mass begins with the opening antiphon: “Gaudete in domino semper,” i.e., “Rejoice in the Lord always.’ Today we light the rose candle and the priest may wear rose vestments to express our joy in the coming of Jesus, as our savior. The prophet Isaiah in the first reading encourages the exiled Jews in Babylon to believe that God is going to save them and transform their lives. In the second reading James the Apostle encourages the early Christians to be patient “because the coming of the Lord is at hand.” Finally, in today’s Gospel reading, Jesus encourages John the Baptist to cast away the popular expectations about the Messiah and simply to accept His healing and preaching ministry as the fulfilling of the messianic prophecy of Isaiah.
Exegesis: Context: Today's Gospel describes how Isaiah's vision of Israel's glorious future is fulfilled unexpectedly by the coming of the promised Messiah and by his healing and preaching mission. But the Jews in general expected a political Messiah who would reestablish the Davidic kingdom after overthrowing the Roman government. Hence most of them were scandalized by Jesus’ peaceful preaching and shameful death. The disciples of John the Baptist continued to insist that John was indeed the Messiah and they awaited his return, causing problems to early Christians. Hence all the four evangelists highlighted John’s important role as the Messiah’s herald but emphasized that John’s was a secondary and subordinate role in salvation history. Matthew in the second part of today’s gospel presents Jesus the true Messiah as paying the highest compliments to John the Baptist as his herald and the last of the prophets, and to the courage of John’s prophetic convictions.
John’s reasonable doubts. The Scripture scholars over the centuries have wondered why John sent his disciples to ask Jesus if he was the one who was to come. There are two possible explanations: 1) John knew that Jesus was the Christ and as a prisoner he wanted his disciples to follow Jesus as their new master. So he sent them to ask Jesus this question and presumed that once they met Jesus they would see for themselves that he was the Messiah and so become followers of Jesus. 2) John began to doubt Jesus’ identity as the promised Messiah. The silent healing, preaching, saving, and empowering ministry of Jesus was a surprise to John and to those who expected a fire-and-brimstone Messiah, whereas Jesus cherished and preached. Besides, Jesus had not yet fulfilled John's prediction that the One-to-come would baptize the repentant in the Holy Spirit. Nor did Jesus conform to popular Jewish beliefs about a warrior and political Messiah who would bring political, social, and economic deliverance to Israel. Instead, Jesus pronounced blessings on the poor in spirit, the meek, and peacemakers (5:1-11). He called his disciples to love their enemies (5:42-48). He warned his disciples not to judge others (7:1-5). For John, these teachings might have seemed to weaken rather than to strengthen the Messiah’s cause. Furthermore, Jesus moved away from Jerusalem, the home of the Temple and the center of religious authority, and began his ministry in Galilee among the common people (4:12). John proclaimed the power of the coming Messiah to bring in a new age, and instead found himself imprisoned in the dungeon cell of Herod’s prison fortress at Machaerus, southeast of the Dead Sea, wondering why the expected Messiah was not setting him free as Isaiah (61:1) had predicted. John found sympathetic doubters among his own disciples who wondered how the Messiah could leave their own teacher in prison, and how He could usher in the kingdom without political or military might. This may have been why John sent his disciples to clarify his doubt, asking: "Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?”
Generosity to clear doubts and humility to accept correction: Instead of criticizing Jesus or breaking away from him, John approached Jesus through his disciples. The disciples asked Jesus if he was the one or should they look for another? John had his doubts, but he was open to hearing Jesus say that he was, indeed, the one! John must have recognized the scriptural allusions behind Jesus' answer. Isaiah 29:18 speaks of the deaf hearing and the blind seeing. Isaiah 35:6 speaks of the lame leaping like a deer. Isaiah 26:19 speaks of the dead becoming alive. Isaiah 61:1 speaks of good news for the oppressed, the brokenhearted, captives and prisoners. These were signs of the Messiah's coming. Jesus could have rebuked John for his doubts, but instead offered him a blessing. Jesus had not lived up to John's expectations, but John did not allow that to be a stumbling block (skandalizomia). Soon enough, Jesus would deal with the people of his home town, who took offense at him (13:57). Complimenting John, Jesus says that John is the fulfillment of Malachi 3:1 ("See, I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me") presenting the Baptist as the end-time messenger the forerunner of the Messiah.
Messages: 1) Learn to survive a faith crisis: From a theological perspective, this entire episode helps us understand how the experience of a faith crisis can play a role in our spiritual and emotional development. If John the Baptist, even after having a direct encounter with Jesus the Messiah, can question, doubt and revise his faith, then so can we. If disillusionment is a necessary precondition for a more resilient faith, then we too must be open to its possibilities. In moments of doubt, despair and disillusionment, we are, indeed, in good company. Occasional doubts – even horrifying doubts – are one thing, but doubts that persist in the face of every biblical remedy demand careful attention. Let us remember the truth that all our Christian dogmas are based on our trust and faith in the divinity of Jesus who taught them. It is up to us to learn our faith in depth and remove our doubts.
2) Go and tell others what you hear and see. As we pray today, we also rejoice that the Lord does not fail to show his power and might. We rejoice at the thought that Jesus is going to be reborn in our lives as love, mercy, forgiveness and spirit of humble and sacrificial service during this Christmas season. During this season, let us joyfully share God’s bountiful grace, forgiveness, and mercy with others. What Jesus commanded John’s disciples, he commands us as well: Go and tell others what you hear and see.
3) Open your hearts and let God transform your lives: We too should be encouraged by today’s readings. They remind us that our lives can also be transformed if we are patient and place our trust in God. The message of Advent is that God is present among us, in our everyday lives. We must prepare our hearts to recognize and welcome Him. “If a man is the center of his life, everyone around him becomes hell for him because everyone around him interferes with him and obstructs what he wants to do” (Jean Paul Sartre). Let us believe in our hearts the gospel message about Jesus given by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Will these gospel reports create metánoia (a change of thinking about God, ourselves, and the world) in us during Advent?