Gaudete Sunday 2026

Gaudete Sunday is the Third Sunday of Advent — in 2026, Sunday, December 13. Its name is the first word of the day's entrance antiphon, “Rejoice,” and it is one of only two days in the year when the priest may wear rose.

The entrance antiphon

LatinGaudete in Domino semper: iterum dico, gaudete. Modestia vestra nota sit omnibus hominibus: Dominus prope est.

Our translationRejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice. Let your forbearance be known to all: the Lord is near.

Philippians 4:4–5 (WEB)Rejoice in the Lord always! Again I will say, “Rejoice!” Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.

Why rose?

Advent's violet is the color of waiting. Halfway through, the Church lightens it to rose: the waiting is real, but the end is in sight. On the Advent wreath the rose candle is lit today, alongside two purple. Laetare Sunday, halfway through Lent, does the same thing.

The readings in 2026

Year B: Isaiah 61:1–2a, 10–11 (“the spirit of the Lord God is upon me”); the Magnificat as the responsorial psalm; 1 Thessalonians 5:16–24 (“rejoice always”); and John 1:6–8, 19–28, where John the Baptist says he is not the light but has come to testify to it.

John 1:23 (WEB)He said, “I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as Isaiah the prophet said.”

Keeping it at home

Light the rose candle at dinner, and keep the day a little more festive than the rest of Advent: a better meal, a carol, the first of the Christmas baking. Gaudete falls in the middle of the St Andrew novena (day 14 of 25 in 2026), and three days before the Christmas novena begins.

Gaudete Sunday questions

When is Gaudete Sunday 2026?

Sunday, December 13, 2026 — the Third Sunday of Advent.

What does Gaudete mean?

“Rejoice!” — the first word of the Mass's entrance antiphon, from St Paul's letter to the Philippians (4:4–5): rejoice in the Lord always; the Lord is near.

Why does the priest wear pink on Gaudete Sunday?

Rose vestments may be worn on two days a year, Gaudete Sunday in Advent and Laetare Sunday in Lent. They lighten the season's violet for one day, as a sign that the feast is close. Violet is also permitted.

Is St Lucy's day celebrated in 2026?

Not at Mass: December 13 is a Sunday in 2026, and a Sunday of Advent takes precedence over her memorial. Saint Lucy customs — the crown of candles, saffron buns — are still kept at home.

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