The days are very short in our part of the world at this time of the year. I don’t think I suffer much from seasonal affective disorder, but I know the short days and long nights have an effect on me. We have had blustery weather for a couple of days and I have chosen in the midst of the busy activities of preparation for Christmas, a week with a lot of family activities, and high winds and rain, to forego my usual bike ride for two days now. Since my usual is to ride every day a couple of days off isn’t significant in the big picture. After all we have been able to get out for daily walks despite the busy days and blustery weather and I’ll be back riding my bike soon. I got a new bike in July and I’ve put over 2,000 miles on it, so I’m not worried about a couple of days of break.

I know, however, that allowing myself to spend more time inside and being less active is not helpful when it comes to my mood. It is a concept that is well known in places where the winter days are short. The Scandinavians have a concept called “friluftsliv.” The word might be translated “open-air living.” Henrik Ibsen, the Norwegian playwright and poet, made the concept popular in the 1850s by describing the value of spending time in remote locations for spiritual and physical wellbeing. Just going outside and spending time with nature can make a big difference in one’s enthusiasm for life and energy levels.

I suspect that there is a relationship between the flow of the seasons in the northern hemisphere and the structure of the Christian calendar. The truth that is expressed in secular concepts such as friluftsliv is in some ways built into the flow of days for Christians. Today is known as Gaudete Sunday. The third Sunday of Advent stands in contrast to the other days of the four-week period of preparation for Christmas. The feast day has an interesting history. Advent is not the most ancient of Christian traditions. The early church focused its attention on Lent and Easter as the main holidays of the Christian year. The celebration of the birth of Christ at Christmas began hundreds of years after the death and resurrection of Jesus. Originally Christmas was added as a second opportunity for receiving new members. Like Easter, a six-week season of preparation including prayer and fasting was instituted. This was later shortened to the four weeks we now observe.

Advent preparations have often been somber in the church. There is an expectation of personal reflection, prayer, and fasting in preparation for the coming celebration. But right in the middle of Advent comes Gaudete: a day of feasting and celebration. The worship for today in traditional churches begins with a reading from Philippians 4: “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” (Philippians 4:4-6). The next verse is the traditional benediction for the day, “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Philippians is an interesting letter that has a prominent place in New Testament literature. The letter, written by Paul from prison is very upbeat. The word “rejoice” (“gaudete” in Latin) appears 17 times in the letter. On the surface, it might be seen as the opposite of the nordic concept friluftsliv. Instead of going outside to find a sense of joy and purpose, Paul was confined inside of the prison. And yet he allows his spirit to roam free in the letter to the Philippians. Our traditions invite us to read this letter in the midst of Advent preparations in part to draw a contrast to the general tone of the season. In the middle of a season of somber preparation, we are invited to have a feast day.

In traditional liturgical congregations there are three purple candles in the Advent wreath and one pink one. Today is the day we light that pink candle. It is a day to rejoice. In congregations that are a bit less formal in their observances there might be four purple candles. Blue is also a color of Advent and in other congregations all of the Advent candles are blue. There are a lot of Christians who haven’t learned about Gaudete Sunday. Recently we led worship in a small island congregation on the first Sunday of Advent. The layperson chosen to light the first candle didn’t know about the colors and instead of lighting a purple candle lit the pink one. It was the candle closest to her. Another member extinguished the pink candle and lit a purple one during the hymn that followed and nothing was said about it during the worship service. Afterwards, we laughed about the candles observing that sometimes you just can’t contain the joy and it slips out before you intend. I love the informal joy of that congregation. No one needs to get upset if everyone doesn’t remember all of the traditions or observe the season in the same way. The joy of being together and supporting one another is more important than the stuffiness of tradition.

Since Christianity is a worldwide religion it is important that in half of the globe this is not the season of long nights and short days. In the southern hemisphere it is the other way around. They are approaching the longest days of the year. It is the middle of summer for our friends in Australia, South Africa, and other southern places. The symbols of candles carry different emotional connections for them.

Wherever on the planet we find ourselves it is important for us to remember that despite grim predictions, deep sadness, ever-present grief, and overwhelming loss, we are capable of expressing joy. It is the Easter message of our faith. Love is stronger than death. There is cause for joy in the most somber of seasons.

May you discover joy today.