Simbang Gabi 2018 1: The Winnowing Fan

SIMBANG GABI 2018

3^RD SUNDAY OF ADVENT C

DECEMBER 16, 2018

Jesus, I trust in you!

The beginning of Simbang Gabi this year coincides with the 3^rd Sunday of Advent which is known as the Gaudete Sunday or the Day of Rejoicing. Both occasions which coincide on the same day tell us of the same message: The Lord is near! Therefore we should rejoice. And by now, many of us feel the pressure of the approach of the holy days. Traffic is exceedingly heavy because everybody wants to do last minute Christmas shopping. After all, we are down to the last 9 days to Christmas. And also let us not forget the many Christmas parties we must attend…even if it were still only in the Advent Season. All of these constitute our preparations that we must fulfill because Christmas is near. “Now the people were filled with great expectation,” so the Gospel tells us. I suppose that these words apply to us as well.

But what are we expecting? Who are we expecting? Are we expecting gifts? Food? Liquor? The return of some long separated loved one? Reconciliation with a former friend? What is is that we are expecting? In the time of John the Baptist, people were clearly expecting the coming of the Christ. They were all asking in their hearts whether John was the Christ they were waiting for. And John was quick to say: “The one mightier than I is coming. I baptize you with water but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fan is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn into unquenchable fire.”

The winnowing fan. Farmers know what this is all about. After the harvest, the grains are collected and pounded (bayuhin) and they are thrown before a powerful fan. The fan blows away the chaff (balat) while the grains fall to the ground. The chaff are easily blown away because they are empty. The grains are heavier, therefore these fall into the ground.

And so we, who find ourselves amidst the frenzy of holiday preparations must ask ourselves: If our preparations are thrown before the winnowing fan, will they be blown away because they are empty? Or will they fall to the ground because they are substantial and real preparations?

“What must we do?” the people asked John. So also should we ask him as well. And John answers us: share and change. “Whoever has 2 cloaks should share with the person who has none. And whoever has food should do likewise.” Isn’t this the filling of the valley that he referred to last Sunday? And to the tax collectors he said, “Stop collecting more than what is prescribed.” To the soldiers he said, “Do not practice extortion, do not falsely accuse anyone. Be satisfied with your wages.” Aren’t these the leveling of the mountains that he referred to last Sunday? By sharing what we have, no matter how little they may be, we fill up the valleys. By cutting down our sinful ways, we level the mountains. This is the substantial preparation for the Lord’s coming. “Your kindness must be known to all. The Lord is near,” said St. Paul.

As every Advent brings us closer to the end, so we should make sure that every Advent increases us in holiness and decreases us in sinfulness. Remaining unchanged from one Advent to another is a waste of so much opportunity given to us by God. Remember that as the deadline draws near, we should be progressing in the work assigned to us. The closer we get to the end, the more task we should have accomplished so that when the time is up, we have something to present, something to offer to the Lord. When we are told that the Lord is near, it means that the struggle for holiness will not be for long. Therefore, let us urge one another to go on and not to abandon the fight. The Lord is near. His recompense (kabayaran) comes with him. Soon, we shall rest from our labors. Soon, we shall be rewarded for our faithful service. It won’t take long. The Lord is near. Our salvation is at hand.

O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!