4th Sunday of Advent - Year B - Laetare Sunsay

4th Sunday of Advent - Year B - Laetare Sunsay

Dearly Beloved,

"For God so love the world that He gave His only Son so that all who believe in Him may not perish but may have eternal life."  

For God so love the world...if God loves the entire world, that means our love cannot be limited.  It cannot be limited because of race, age, gender, background, culture, religious affiliation, different political ideologies, financial status, etc.  If God loves the entire world, then our capacity and potential for love must be broadened.

For God so love the world...it's difficult to fully understand the virtue of love.  Being loved is like the feeling of being accepted.  Being loved is like the feeling of being accepted by a person or community.  To be loved is to be accepted for who we are, without being judged.  So no matter what I look like on the outside, regardless of my skin color or background, regardless of my weight or height, God still loves and accepts me.  And no matter what I do, God still loves me.  But God may NOT be happy, and God may not approve with some of my choices and decisions, because it may bring harm to my body and soul.  But it doesn't mean that God stop loving and accepting me.  Our first reading points that out clearly as the chosen people show infidelity to God, and as a result were exiled.  But through King Cyrus, the merciful God allowed them to return to their home and begin anew.  

For God so love the world that He sent His only Son.  The love of God is not an abstract concept or principle.  It is visibly manifested in Christ, the only Son of God.  As Catholics, we believe that God's love and presence is manifested through God's Word and Sacraments.  It is manifest when the Word of God is proclaimed.   It is manifested through the waters of Baptism, the bread and wine, the body and blood of Christ.  It is manifested through the priest who is like Christ being merciful and forgiving to us sinners.  It is manifested when we gather as a faith community, to worship and sing praise to God.  It is manifested in the love of a married couple.  It is manifested through the oils of Confirmation and Anointing.  It is manifested when after we partake in the Eucharist, we become the body and blood of Christ, an extension of him as we go forth being good people, helping others in need, and proclaim the good news by our lives.  The Word is made flesh, and as a body of Christ, we get to be a part of God's incarnation, bringing the light of Christ to places of darkness.  

Today, on this Laetarae Sunday, we have reached our halfway point on the Lenten Journey.  The spiritual disciplines of fasting, prayer and almsgivings are like athletes who exercise and prepare for an important upcoming event or competition.  We are halfway to the completion of Lent, so hang in there and stay the course with the spiritual disciplines of prayer, fasting and almsgivings.  We are almost there.  May God bless you always!  

Glory be...