LAETARE SUNDAY

Homily given by Fr. Dennis Koliński, SJC

St. Peter’s Church in Volo

2 March 2008

Today, in the middle of Lent, we process with the Holy Father to the stational church of Santa Croce, the Basilica of the Holy Cross. During the reign of the Emperor Constantine, the imperial palace of his mother Helena, stood on the site of this present-day church and it is said the she converted a part of the palace into a basilica to house the relics of the True Cross, which she brought back from the Holy Land.

In the present-day Chapel of the Relics found in this basilica we can still see a large relic of the True Cross, a nail from the Cross, a thorn from the Crown of Thorns, and the cross beam of the cross of the Good Thief. There is also a large piece of the sign that Pilate had nailed to the Cross, with the inscription “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews,” written in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin. This particular relic was found in 1492, hidden in the wall of the basilica behind a mosaic that was being repaired, presumably to guard it from raiding armies. We know that such a relic was venerated in Jerusalem before St. Helena’s visit.

It was traditional for the Pope to come to this stational church on the Fourth Sunday of Lent not only to celebrate the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, but also to bless the Golden Rose, a flower made of solid gold and adorned with precious jewels, that was presented to a prominent Catholic, who was known to be a defender of the faith. On this Sunday of Lent, sometimes called “Rose Sunday,” the rose was a traditional symbol of the joys of heaven bought for us by the Passion of Christ. It’s as if in the midst of Lenten fasts and sacrifices a rose grows up in the middle of our Lenten observances to anticipate the joy of Easter, which is already not far off. And in contrast to the somber penitential character of Lenten Masses, the first words of today’s Mass: Laetare, Jerusalem!—“Rejoice Jerusalem!” That is why we call this Sunday “Laetare Sunday”.

Every year, in the very middle of the trials of Lent, the Church gives us this special Sunday as a break from the somber penitential mood of this season. Just like Gaudete Sunday in the middle of Advent, the purple color of sorrow and penance is softened tempering the sorrow of Lent and instead we wear rose-colored vestments to remind us that Easter isn’t far away. The organ, which was traditionally banned during Lent was allowed to play once again and flowers can return to the altars for just this one day.

The rose is a fitting symbol of today’s glimmer of joy amidst the sorrow of Lent because it reflects how joy and sorrow are so often very close together in the human heart and joy is often born out of suffering. A mother’s pains of childbirth are quickly changed to feelings of joy after the birth of her child. The pain of strenuous physical training can give way to joy when the athlete receives the gold medal of victory. And on that first Easter morning the cruel suffering of our Lord’s Passion and Death all faded away with the joy that Christ had risen from the dead and that the gates of heaven were once again thrown open to mankind.

This close relationship between suffering and joy is so beautifully symbolized by the rose, which rises up in the midst of the somber season of Lent, representing both sorrow for sin by its thorns and paschal joy by its beautiful flower. When roses grow in our yards, all we see at first are stems covered with thorns, but if we are patient, those thorny twigs bring forth beautiful and fragrant blossoms. Christ’s public life and Passion were like a thorny rose bush, which with His Resurrection blossomed into glory. And each year, we relive that drama as we pass through the thorns of Lent to the joy of Easter. By its color, odor and taste the rose represents love after hate, joy after sorrow and fullness after hunger.[i] The rose of Laetare Sunday reminds us in the midst of the thorns of Lent that it won’t be long until the joy of Easter will burst forth.

“Rejoice Jerusalem, and all you that love her gather together; rejoice with her in gladness, you who were in mourning, that you may exult.”