We are joyful this day because Easter draws near. Our priest may wear rose-colored vestments instead of purple or violet. It’s a good time to add to our joy by going to Confession, preparing for receiving Our Lord at Easter. Church flowers and more music are allowed today before we return to a penitential mode. Our readings tell the sad story of infidelity on the part of God’s chosen people, and the grievous punishments they suffered, including exile. “By the streams of Babylon, we sat and wept,” mourns the psalmist. Hope, however, returns, with the king of Persia decreeing that God’s temple be raised in Jerusalem. Saint Paul assures us that “God, who is rich in mercy, … even when we were dead in our transgressions, brought us to life with Christ.” The Gospel from St. John recounts Jesus’s famous assurance that He came to save the world. We are halfway to Easter in our Lenten journey. Next week is the last Sunday before Palm Sunday.