Sister Kate’s “Gospel Question of the Week” (Matthew 11: 2-11) …Weekend of 12/14-15/2013 … Third Sunday of Advent…Today’s readings invite us to REJOICE at the rebirth of Jesus in our lives as we are preparing for our annual Christmas celebration. Today is called Gaudete Sunday in our Catholic tradition because today’s Mass used to begin with the opening Latin antiphon: “Gaudete in domino semper,” i.e., “Rejoice in the Lord always.” So we light the rose candle on the Advent wreath to symbolize our joy at the approaching birth of our Savior. In the first part of today’s Holy Gospel reading, Jesus encourages John the Baptist, who is in prison, to rejoice by casting away his wrong expectations about the Messiah (not an earthly King with a powerful army ready for war) and to accept Jesus, a simple Man whose healing and preaching ministry is the fulfillment of the messianic prophecy of Isaiah. This, no doubt, is a bit troubling for John the Baptist to accept. The chosen nation of the Israelites expected a different kind of Messiah…one who would lead a mighty army. In the second part of today’s Holy Gospel, Matthew presents Jesus, the true Messiah, and he pays the highest compliments to John the Baptist as a herald of the Messiah and the last of the prophets. Matthew gives special credit to John’s courage in the face of adversity. Would that we had this kind of courage in professing our faith! In this season of Advent, we look forward to the coming of our Savior and we depend on His presence in our lives. It is this presence that will give us the courage we need. We rejoice at the thought that Jesus is going to be reborn in our lives as love, mercy, forgiveness and the spirit of humble and sacrificial service during this Christmas season. So let us joyfully share God’s bountiful grace, forgiveness, and mercy with others. What Jesus commanded John’s disciples, he commands of us as well: Go and tell others what you hear and see. This means that we have to share with others our experience of the rebirth of Jesus within us. So what is the challenge of Advent and Christmas for us? We need to open our hearts and let God transform our lives. Today’s readings remind us that this can happen 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 by allowing ametánoia (a significant change in the way we think about God, ourselves, and the world) in us during Advent. One evening at the country park, a group of teenage boys were playing basketball. A tall, bald, African-American man strolled up. The man watched for a few minutes, then asked if he might play with them. He made three point jump shots and lay-ups and hooks with the ease of a pro. The stranger played for about fifteen minutes with the teenagers, gave them some pointers, thanked them for letting him play, and disappeared. The stranger didn't tell the teenagers his name. They'd seen Michael Jordan on TV, and he looked like him. But could this stranger who came to a remote village actually be Michael Jordan? In today’s Gospel, John the Baptist asks the same kind of question about Jesus. Could this gentle Jesus with a band of fishermen as his disciples be the real Messiah, the long awaited Anointed One of God. GOSPEL QUESTION FOR THE WEEK: Is courage a virtue that is particularly strong in you or does it need some work?