We begin the 3rd week of Advent with the word, “Rejoice”. Rejoice for the coming of the Lord is near. However, the tone of the readings changes somewhat this weekend. The First Two Sundays of Advent we focused on signs— signs we are given and signs we follow, and heard we must not be so inwardly focused to miss the signs. We also reminded ourselves that God always allows U-turns and that’s what Advent is all about.
This week we hear that we have been “clothed in a robe of salvation and wrapped in a mantle of justice…” We’re told, “Do not quench the Spirit” and retain the good and refrain from evil. What in the world does that mean? To follow a sign usually leads us to an action or a destination. The message this week is—Jesus is coming. His whole life is an example for us to follow. Following is not watching. Following is doing. Doing what? Evangelizing. Reconciling both with God and with others. Showing others the face of Christ that we should be seeing in everyone. As Pope Francis said, “an evangelizer must never look like someone who has just come back from a funeral!” There’s a real challenge here and a message we should carry not only through the rest of Advent but the rest of our lives: it’s time to do something!