In English, however, both are translated as “Rejoice” which makes one wonder if they are any differences in these two Latin words. Indeed, rose is a departure from purple which is the operative colour for both the seasons of Lent and Advent. According to a theologian, the difference between the two words is to be found in the way joy is expressed. Laetare reflects a joy that is outwardly manifested and shown whereas Gaudete suggests an interior rejoicing.
The thing about Lent is that it is easier to understand a need for Laetare Sunday. In the midst of our penance, the Church gives us a glimpse of the Easter joy that is coming. It is like an appetiser—a foretaste of the joy of Easter to come. In a sense, our Catholic sensibility is accommodative of human frailty. It recognises the need for encouragement and so just halfway through the season the Church commends us to continue the journey unto Easter.
For Advent, a “break” from the penitential spirit does not make sense at all because what we are thick in a season of giving that coincides with excesses in wastage and overeating. Penitential or not, we seem to spend most of our Advent fussing about Christmas preparation and in some cases, people are already celebrating as if Christmas were already here. Is it not true that every year, we seem to struggle with the dilemma of delaying the urge to put up our Christmas decorations, fearing that by the time we set them up, the focus would have turned to Chinese New Year?
In the midst of this dilemma the readings bid us to rejoice because the Lord is near. Thus, from St Paul we get an exhortation to the Philippians, the entrance antiphon which invites us to “Gaudete in Domino semper: iterum dico gaudete” translated as “Rejoice in the LORD always; again, I say rejoice”. It means the focus is the present, as in the here and now, and not so much the past or the 2nd Coming of Christ.
If rejoicing is what we are supposed to do, what does it mean to have joy and in particular, how does one describe it as an interior movement? We turn once again to the figure of John the Baptist. Just imagine the scene of two women meeting each other. One had just assented to the Incarnation of the Saviour and the other in her old age was now heavily pregnant. At the moment of encounter, this child in the womb is highly animated and figuratively jumping with delight at the nearness of the newly conceived Redeemer. The preface of the Mission of the Precursor reflects this elation, “even in the womb he leapt for joy at the coming of human salvation. He alone of all the prophets pointed out the Lamb of redemption”.
The relationship between John and Jesus is best described as one between a Groom and his best man. It is a kinship untainted by competition. Remember when John was imprisoned, he sent emissaries to Jesus to enquire if He was the one to whom he had been witnessing to. John could have been famous in his own right. Whereas the public reputation of Jesus was one who knew how to have enjoy life. It mattered not to John that his days were numbered, only that he should know if he had been pointing at the right Man. That was all he cared for.
If their relationship were marked by competitiveness, then joy would be impossible as it would be predicated upon winning. John was not into proving himself and so he shows us what it means to be joyful. Knowing firmly that he is not the Groom is the first step. He is merely the best man who only aim in life is to make the Groom shine. As such his joy is derived. As long as the Groom is near, the best man is ecstatic. Like the moon, John is content to shine bright not with its own light but from the brilliance of the sun. Knowing who we are and who God is, is the key to joy.
If peace is not the absence of war, then Gaudete’s joy does not mean that everything has to be going well for us. We have this mistaken notion that joy is an expression that everything is hunky dory. At this moment of uncertainty, we are suffering this never-ending and cursed pandemic. It is terrible as we hear everywhere this or that person has been infected with Covid. It feels like joy should not permitted in such a situation but as C.S. Lewis reminds us, “Joy is the serious business of heaven”.
John the Baptist rejoiced to hear the Bridegroom’s voice. So, what truly counts for us is that Jesus the Bridegroom, whom Advent is a preparation to welcome, has always been with us. Gaudete Sunday interior joy is a reminder of this reality. With this kind of knowledge that God is in our midst, one cannot suppress the joy that must emanate or exude from within us. This joy does not hide a keen awareness that this earthly life cannot fully capture or contain the ultimate happiness we so deeply desire. Despite that, we are not oppressed or weighed down by sadness because we recognise that our final reality can never be total annihilation. Why? Because Christ our Lord is always with us. As Jesus Christ is Emmanuel, God-with-us, John found his joy complete in pointing to Him. We too can find ours. In order that Christ’s joy may radiate through us, we beseech Him to rule our hearts as we strive to make Him the centre of our life and mission. The strength of Gaudete’s joy will overflow from a life which allows Christ to be Christ.
[1]Gaudete goes back a long time. Advent was Lent’s counterpart in that it has 40 days beginning from 12th Nov, the Memorial of St Martin de Tours. Advent then, was also known as St Martin’s Lent. As a counterpart to Laetare Sunday, Gaudete marks the mid-point in Lent.
