Joyous

Rejoice in the Lord Always!

Today we celebrate the Third Sunday
of Advent, known as Gaudete Sunday, or Joy Sunday. Today the Advent spirit of anticipation and preparation (including penance) is temporarily set aside, and in its place we revel in the joy and gladness of the impending birth of Jesus.

The Advent candle we light on Gaudete Sunday is called the Shepherd's Candle, after the shepherds to whom the angels appeared to herald the coming of the Christ Child. Instead of lavender or purple, for the Shepherd's Candle we traditionally use a pink or rose color.

The name comes from the Latin version of Philippians 4:4, Gaudete in Domino semper, the first words of the Introit prayer for Mass on the Third Sunday of Advent.

"Is that why you wore a pink shirt to Mass?"

That shirt isn't pink...it's rose...just like the priest's vestments often are today...

HOO-AH!

Special uniforms by Nike (Army) and Under Armour (Navy)

Yesterday was the
117th incarnation of America's Game, the annual football clash between Army and Navy. By tradition,
it was the only college football game on the television schedule.





The game wasn't perfect, by any means (the teams combined for seven turnovers),
but it was a clean (only three penalties), hard-fought contest.

Since both teams already had bowl invitations lined up, this game was all about
The Streak, Navy's 14 consecutive victories in the series. The last time Army won
was the 2001 game which occurred just a few weeks after the 9/11 terror attacks...

...but The Streak came to an end yesterday, as the plucky Army team dominated on defense (allowing Navy just 201 yards and 19:28 in time of possession) while rushing for 316 yards and three touchdowns.



The last of those TDs came with just 6:00 to play in the game, after Navy had fought back from a 14-0 halftime deficit to take a 17-14 lead early in the 4th quarter.

As a follower of both teams I am glad to see them each have successful seasons, but
I must confess that I wanted Army to prevail yesterday. Long winning streaks by one side aren't good for a rivalry. Now I can focus on cheering for both teams in their bowl games later this month!

"And for Air Force, too, who beat both of these teams!"

Yes, yes they did...this was the best football season by all three service academies combined in many years...

Management Sociopathy

From the indispensable comic strip Dilbert, by Scott Adams, which you should read every day, as I do.

Until Next Time...

A surprising number of traditional Christmas songs and carols have their roots in medieval times. Even the word "carol" itself is an echo of medieval musical history.

"Gaudete" is a traditional Christmas song dating back to at least the 16th century, although its Latin lyrics suggest that an even earlier plainsong version probably existed. It has been a staple of choir and choral performance for centuries, and has been recorded by a wide variety of popular choral groups including The King's Singers, Celtic Thunder, and Libera.

In 1972 the English folk-rock group Steeleye Span released an a cappella version of "Gaudete" as a single, and it became one of only three chart hits in England's history to be sung entirely in Latin. It was also one of a tiny handful of a cappella hits.

The group included a slightly different version of "Gaudete" on their 1972 album Below the Salt, and for many years they performed the song as the final number for their live concerts.



Today's send-off is the group performing the carol to conclude a show in France in 2004 on their 35th Anniversary world tour, which was filmed and released as a DVD in 2005. Enjoy...