Gaudete Sunday, pronounced gow-day-tay, is the third Sunday of Advent. The day takes its common name from the Latin word gaudete, which means rejoice.
Represented by A Rose Color
One of the candles in the Advent wreath is rose-colored for Gaudete Sunday or Joy Sunday. The priest wears rose vestments instead of violet, otherwise prescribed for every day in the season of Advent.
Like Laetare Sunday in Lent
Gaudete Sunday is a counterpart to Laetare Sunday in the liturgical season of Lent. It provides a similar break about midway through a season and signifies the nearness of the Lord’s coming.
A Break from Preparation to Rejoice
While the theme of Advent is a focus on the coming of Jesus in three ways: His first, His present, and His final Advent, the readings for Gaudete Sunday focus on rejoicing in the Lord — Christian joy — as well as the mission of St. John the Baptist and his connection with Advent.
Joy vs. Happiness
Theologian Henri Nouwen described the difference between joy and happiness. While happiness depends on external conditions, joy is “the experience of knowing that you are unconditionally loved and that nothing — sickness, failure, emotional distress, oppression, war, or even death — can take that love away.” Thus, joy can be present even amid sadness.
Pope Francis’s Words of Wisdom
In his 2014 Gaudete Sunday homily, Pope Francis said that Gaudete Sunday is known as the “Sunday of joy” and that instead of fretting about “all they still haven’t” done to prepare for Christmas, people should “think of all the good things life has given you.”
