"The invitation to joy is characteristic of the season of Advent: the expectation of Jesus’ birth that we experience is joyful, somewhat like when we await the visit of a person we love a great deal, for example, a friend whom we have not seen for a long time, a relative... We are in joyful anticipation… And what is the reason for this joy?... The closer the Lord is to us, the more joy we feel; the farther away he is, the more sadness we feel. This is a rule for Christians."
Pope Francis