Homily for 3rd Sunday of Advent (12/16/2019)
Maryknoll Christmas Gathering, Maryknoll Chapel, Los Altos
I have a question for you. On a scale of 1 to 10, how joyful do you feel?
In our Missionary Discipleship workshops we ask folks this question. Often times they struggle with it. They are not sure what joy is. And some share that they wish that they were more joyful, but don’t know how to do that. I also struggle with that.
We gather today deep into the Advent season. The Church in her wisdom uses this 3rd Sunday of Advent to remind us to reflect on the question: “what is joy?” And, how do we find it?
How many times in the readings today do we hear the words joys, rejoice and exult? From the first reading:
Pope Francis reminds us that joy is the essence of mission and missionary discipleship. His roadmap for the Church is called “Joy of the Gospel.” In that it he tells us that we are a community of missionary disciples who go forth in joy to share the Good News of God’s love. Joy is what we are about. Evangelization is not about proselytizing, but rather about attraction, attraction, attraction. People are attracted to joy, they want joy. Who wants to be around a sourpuss? They are attracted to joyful people.
So what is joy? And how do we find it and share it?
In our workshops we ask people to work in groups to come up with a definition of joy. We’ve done this around the country, and even in Jamaica. People agree that joy cannot be easily reduced to a neat definition, but people know it when they experience it. And, they’re clear what it is not. It’s not the fleeting pleasure from a high that leaves you empty and wanting more. It’s not the feeling that comes from a new cell phone or a car.
Universally they point to it being rooted in relationship. It is the feeling of harmony that comes from being in right relationship with God, self, others, and all of creation; it is the wholeness of shalom, the peace that Jesus offers. It is pervasive and endures hardship and suffering; it even survives death, resurrecting in new life.
Think for a moment about the times you’ve felt such joy.
For me during Advent, the image of joy that comes to mind is when my wife was pregnant with our 3 kids. Advent is a season that recognizes not only the joy that is present, but also the expectancy, longing and waiting for more joy to come. Pregnancy is like that, knowing that something is about to be birthed that will change your life forever. I remember with each of my kids the unsurpressable joy I felt when they were born. I was especially reminded of this last year, when my first grandchild was born a few days after Christmas. Every day my son and daughter in law send me a picture of her. When I see it, I’m instantly filled with joy. I cannot help but smile when I see that picture and if you’re around me when it comes, you’ll be subjected to it as well. Joy has to be shared.
I think that’s a pretty normal place where people find joy, in their families, partners and best friends. But the Gospel challenges us not to limit ourselves to that. Sometimes, the sweetest joy is found in unexpected places and unplanned times.
Watch a video about Fr. Joy’s ministry with migrants in Taiwan.
Learn more about immersion trips with Maryknoll
Maryknoll Christmas Gathering, Maryknoll Chapel, Los Altos
I have a question for you. On a scale of 1 to 10, how joyful do you feel?
In our Missionary Discipleship workshops we ask folks this question. Often times they struggle with it. They are not sure what joy is. And some share that they wish that they were more joyful, but don’t know how to do that. I also struggle with that.
We gather today deep into the Advent season. The Church in her wisdom uses this 3rd Sunday of Advent to remind us to reflect on the question: “what is joy?” And, how do we find it?
How many times in the readings today do we hear the words joys, rejoice and exult? From the first reading:
Shout for joy, O daughter Zion!From the Psalm:
Sing joyfully, O Israel!
Be glad and exult with all your heart,
“Cry out with joy and gladness”From the Second Reading:
Brothers and sisters:So why is joy so important, and what does it mean to our quest to become fully human? Joy is what God hopes for us, what God created us for. We are created in the image and likeness of a God, who is love. So it is God’s mission to share the joy that comes from being loved and sharing love.
Rejoice in the Lord always.
I shall say it again: rejoice!
Pope Francis reminds us that joy is the essence of mission and missionary discipleship. His roadmap for the Church is called “Joy of the Gospel.” In that it he tells us that we are a community of missionary disciples who go forth in joy to share the Good News of God’s love. Joy is what we are about. Evangelization is not about proselytizing, but rather about attraction, attraction, attraction. People are attracted to joy, they want joy. Who wants to be around a sourpuss? They are attracted to joyful people.
So what is joy? And how do we find it and share it?
In our workshops we ask people to work in groups to come up with a definition of joy. We’ve done this around the country, and even in Jamaica. People agree that joy cannot be easily reduced to a neat definition, but people know it when they experience it. And, they’re clear what it is not. It’s not the fleeting pleasure from a high that leaves you empty and wanting more. It’s not the feeling that comes from a new cell phone or a car.
Universally they point to it being rooted in relationship. It is the feeling of harmony that comes from being in right relationship with God, self, others, and all of creation; it is the wholeness of shalom, the peace that Jesus offers. It is pervasive and endures hardship and suffering; it even survives death, resurrecting in new life.
Think for a moment about the times you’ve felt such joy.
For me during Advent, the image of joy that comes to mind is when my wife was pregnant with our 3 kids. Advent is a season that recognizes not only the joy that is present, but also the expectancy, longing and waiting for more joy to come. Pregnancy is like that, knowing that something is about to be birthed that will change your life forever. I remember with each of my kids the unsurpressable joy I felt when they were born. I was especially reminded of this last year, when my first grandchild was born a few days after Christmas. Every day my son and daughter in law send me a picture of her. When I see it, I’m instantly filled with joy. I cannot help but smile when I see that picture and if you’re around me when it comes, you’ll be subjected to it as well. Joy has to be shared.
I think that’s a pretty normal place where people find joy, in their families, partners and best friends. But the Gospel challenges us not to limit ourselves to that. Sometimes, the sweetest joy is found in unexpected places and unplanned times.
How do we find that joy and share it? The answer seems counter-intuitive and it certainly is counter-cultural. It is not found in materialism or individualism as culture tells us. The Gospel reading today points toward it. John the Baptist foreshadows the core Gospel message that Jesus will preach in actions more than words. Joy is often found at the margins and peripheries, the liminal space far from the center of comfort. And it is found more in giving than in receiving.
Look at the story of Jesus’ birth. It is hardly at the center of convention or normality. It happens in the context of an “irregular” marriage situation involving an unwed pregnant teen and a birth in a manger far from home. It is attended by shepherds, considered the despicable low-lives at the time. But yet it is characterized by a moment of such great joy that the angels sang out from heaven. Joy being born at that margins. God becoming one of us at the periphery in a messy situation.
I’m just back for Asia, visiting our Maryknoll missioners to scope out an immersion trip possibilities. Let me share one example of where I found that joy at the margins.
Taiwan is a very developed part of China that manufactures electronics, including the parts for our cellphones. The factories are staffed by migrants who are paid low wages to work long hours. Many come from the Philippines, leaving family and friends to escape poverty.
In the shadow of these factories, Fr. Joyalito, known as Fr. Joy, ministers to that community of outcasts. He gathers them for mass and social events in an old movie theater. In that unconventional church, he creates a home for them. A safe harbor for fellowship and support. He also provides opportunities for empowerment. Places where they can teach each other new skills like baking, sewing, massage and photography.
I only spent a couple days there, but the welcome and hospitality that I received from that community was overwhelming. It was a palatable joy, an infectious and contagious joy that healed my soul. You see, a few days before I had been in Phnom Phen and visited the prison and killing fields where millions of Cambodians were exterminated in the genocide of Pol Pot. I left there depleted and bordering on despair. It shook my faith in human nature and God.
But being in the loving presence of the migrant filipino community in Taiwan broke me out of that darkness. When I saw how they built community on the margins, and cared for each other, and extended welcome to the stranger, it reminded me that our true nature is love and joy. It reaffirmed my belief that joy not only persists but flourishes in the midst of hardships and suffering. That when all is said and done, that is the purpose of human existence and God’s plan for creation. To be loved and to share love. It was an incredible early Christmas gift for me.
As we come towards the end of Advent and prepare to celebrate the JOY of Christmas, let’s step back, pause and take a deep breath:
I’m just back for Asia, visiting our Maryknoll missioners to scope out an immersion trip possibilities. Let me share one example of where I found that joy at the margins.
Taiwan is a very developed part of China that manufactures electronics, including the parts for our cellphones. The factories are staffed by migrants who are paid low wages to work long hours. Many come from the Philippines, leaving family and friends to escape poverty.
In the shadow of these factories, Fr. Joyalito, known as Fr. Joy, ministers to that community of outcasts. He gathers them for mass and social events in an old movie theater. In that unconventional church, he creates a home for them. A safe harbor for fellowship and support. He also provides opportunities for empowerment. Places where they can teach each other new skills like baking, sewing, massage and photography.
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| Matt with Fr. Joy and the Filipino community |
I only spent a couple days there, but the welcome and hospitality that I received from that community was overwhelming. It was a palatable joy, an infectious and contagious joy that healed my soul. You see, a few days before I had been in Phnom Phen and visited the prison and killing fields where millions of Cambodians were exterminated in the genocide of Pol Pot. I left there depleted and bordering on despair. It shook my faith in human nature and God.
 |
| Migrants learning baking skills |
But being in the loving presence of the migrant filipino community in Taiwan broke me out of that darkness. When I saw how they built community on the margins, and cared for each other, and extended welcome to the stranger, it reminded me that our true nature is love and joy. It reaffirmed my belief that joy not only persists but flourishes in the midst of hardships and suffering. That when all is said and done, that is the purpose of human existence and God’s plan for creation. To be loved and to share love. It was an incredible early Christmas gift for me.
As we come towards the end of Advent and prepare to celebrate the JOY of Christmas, let’s step back, pause and take a deep breath:
Let us give thanks for the joy we’ve experienced in our lives.
Let us feed our hunger to be even more joyful.
Let us dig deep for the courage and energy to leave the shore of our comfort zones.
Let us continue to venture out from the center to the liminal space, to the margins, the peripheries,
Let us open our hearts to receive joy and give joy freely.
Let us allow God to incarnate love in our very being.
Let us become again the embodiment of the Christmas story, vessels of God’s joy.
Watch a video about Fr. Joy’s ministry with migrants in Taiwan.
Learn more about immersion trips with Maryknoll
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| Deacon Matt Dulka is a Mission Education Promoter with the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers. |
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