Third Sunday of Advent (C)

Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice!

Phil 4:4-7

INTRODUCTION

There are people who say that if you want to be good, you have to ready to be unhappy. Why? Because there are a lot of things that you can not do. In fact, if you look at the Ten Commandments, almost all of them begin with the words “You shall not….” Only the third and the fourth commandments are not prohibitions.

This reminded me of a woman who was taking care of her sickly mother. The doctor had a long list of food that she can not eat. One day her mother got fed up because she could not eat lechon (roasted pig). It has a high cholesterol content. So she blurted out, “Never mind. Let me eat lechon. Even if I die, I will die happy.”

So some people say, “Don’t mind the prohibitions. Do it even if it is sinful. Even if you go to hell, you will go to hell happy.”

SIN AND HAPPINESS

It is true that if you want to be close to God, there are many things that you should not do. It is true that you have to give up certain things. But is it really true that these things give you happiness? I would say that these things do not give us happiness. What they give us is pleasure. But pleasure is felt in the body, while happiness is felt in the heart. And even then the pleasure they give us do not last.

There might be pleasure in drinking to excess. But the pleasure do not last. In fact, it is followed by a big headache, by a hangover.

There might be pleasure in smoking. But the pleasure do not last forever. Sometime in future, you get cancer or emphysema. It’s no fun getting sick. It’s no fun spending a lot of money for hospitalization and medicine.

DON BOSCO AND HAPPINESS

Don Bosco knew that young people may be led to believe that being good means being unhappy. That was why when he wrote a book for youth, he wrote the following: “But some of you may argue: if we begin to serve God now, we shall be-come sad and depressed. I answer that this is not true. He who serves the devil is miserable, even if he pretends to be happy. Courage then, my dear friends, employ your time virtuously, and I assure you that your heart will always be happy and contented. You will experience as a consequence how sweet and pleasing it is to serve the Lord.”

This was why in the Oratory of Don Bosco it was common to hear the following quotes: “Serve the Lord with joy” and “Here holiness consists in being cheerful.”

But is it really true that being good makes you happy? Is it really true that being near God makes your heart contented? Mickey was a new boy at the Oratory of Don Bosco. He was a good athlete and he found great happiness in the playground. But one day, he avoided the playground. A friend came and asked him what was the matter? At first, he kept quiet. But later he told his friend that he was sad because envied them. His friend was surprised. “You envy us. But it is we who envy you. You are so good at games.” And Mickey answered, “I envy you because I am happy only when I play. After the games, I am not happy anymore. But all of you are still happy even games are over.” So his friend told him to go to Don Bosco because Don Bosco was very good at solving their problems.

So Mickey went to Don Bosco and poured out his problem. Don Bosco listened and gave this advice. “I want you to spend the whole day today examining your life. Tonight come to my office and make a good confession. I promise you that you will come out of my office very happy.”

And that was what Mickey did. When he left the office of Don Bosco, his friend who was waiting outside asked him why he was crying. Mickey wiped his tears and answered, “Because I feel so happy.”

JOY AND HAPPINESS AT CHRISTMAS

How do we make our Christmas a joyful and happy event?

1. Go to confession. The second reading says, “Rejoice in the Lord always. I say it again, ‘Rejoice.’” We can experience joy in the Lord if we remove sin which sepa-rates us from him. Mickey experienced great joy after a good confession. Go to con-fession and be happy.

2. Make family and friends happy. Alan Robles observed that for Filipinos, hap-piness isn't material—it's social. We're happiest in the midst of family and friends. But that happiness will be multiplied when we make them happy. Give a helping hand around the house. Help in putting up Christmas decorations. Help in preparing the Noche Buena. Help in wrapping Christmas gifts. Prepare alternative gifts. Make family and friends happy and you will be happy twice over.

3. Make people outside the circle of your family and friends happy, too. Charity begins at home but should not end at home. You may want to give Christmas pack-ages to the beggars. Or you may want to pack assorted candies and give them to the children of the neighborhood. Or it might be as simple as giving food to a neighbor. Make other people happy and you, too, will be happy.

CONCLUSION

Your happiness this Christmas depends on the size of your heart. If your heart is so small that it can only accommodate yourself, then you won’t really be happy. Make it big, big enough to accommodate God, family and friends and others as well. Imagine how happy you’ll be.