Shikrot Mpwi – Sunday Synopsis
Fr. Justine John DYIKUK
Dear friends in Christ,
On the Third Sunday of Advent, Year A – Gaudete (14 November 2025), I bring you greetings and God’s blessings!
Theme: Joy to Balance Our Affliction
Introduction
Friends in Christ, Gaudete, comes from the Latin antiphon at Mass “Gaudete in Domino semper,” which translates as “Rejoice in the Lord always” (Philippians 4:4-5). This invitation positions us to better appreciate Advent as a time for waiting on the Lord to fulfil his promises. Accordingly, while the prophet Isaiah urges us to rejoice because the glory and majesty of the Lord are coming, St. James admonishes us to establish ourselves in patience for the coming of the Lord. The gospel reveals John’s incarceration and how he sent his disciples to ask if Jesus is the Christ.
Review of the Readings
In the first reading, the prophet Isaiah (Is 35:1-6a.10) urges us to rejoice because the glory and majesty of the Lord are coming. He emphatically states “[we] shall obtain the joy and gladness” of the Lord and “[our] sorrow and sighing shall flee away.”
In the second reading (James 5:7-10), St. James admonishes us to establish ourselves for the coming of the Lord while noting that patience is key to a good Advent. He surmises: “As an example of suffering and patience, brethren, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.” He gives the example of the farmer to drive home his point on perseverance for the coming of Christ.
The gospel (Mat. 11:2-11) reveals that, after working tirelessly to prepare the people for the coming of Christ, John ends up in prison. Perplexed, he sent his disciples to ask if Jesus was the anointed one. Jesus does not give a direct answer but rather replies: “Go and tell John what you hear and see: The blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised, and the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is he who takes no offense at me.”
Takeaway Lessons
1. Amid the wilderness and the dry-lands of persecution, disease, sickness, death, poverty, and economic malaise, the Prophet Isaiah assures that we should rejoice because our reality shall bring forth flowers and we shall rejoice.
2. In the face of a difficult spouse, children, and parents, St. James invites us to imitate the farmer by taking lessons in patience in the mould of the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.
3. Like John, when we are faced with trials, tribulations, and temptations, we tend to ask, “Is our God alive? “Are we in the right religion?” “Is God still on the throne?” – Notwithstanding concerns of food and drink, making material ends meet, we are charged to be firm in faith, trusting God with our lives.
4. By telling the crowds, “Blessed is he who takes no offense at me,” Gaudete Sunday invites us to look for reasons to be happy during the yuletide season, no matter what situation we are in.
5. By stating that of all men none is greater than John the Baptist, “yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he is,” Jesus reminds us that our spiritual preparation should go beyond Christmas unto God’s Kingdom.
Conclusion
Today, believers tend to associate a true Church of God with miracles and zero suffering. Viewing the rosy side of life without its corresponding thorns amounts to a single narrative. We are challenged to blend the prophecy of Isaiah and the impending death of John the Baptist. We ought to read the signs of the times. We urgently need the sign of Jonah, namely, repentance, mindful that our faith does not provide automatic immunity to sin and suffering. As we await the coming of Christ, may the Lord give us joy to balance our affliction, as the Psalmist says in Psalm 90:15. Amen.
