New Year’s
Day 2023
Solemnity of
Mary, the Mother of God
The life of Jesus begins with Mary at the Bethlehem
crib. Therefore, it is most appropriate
we begin the New Year with a Feast of Mary – Mary the Mother of God.
As a people
of faith, we gather on this New Year’s Day to honor Mary, the great woman of
faith. We are told, once again, how she
used time -- to treasure and reflect in her heart all that God had done for her
and how God was giving direction to her life.
Her example should speak to us, for we also need to take the time to
treasure and reflect within our own hearts what God is doing and what God is
calling us to do.
We listen
best when we make the effort to go to that quiet place to hear God speaking to
us. We take the side of God in the
battle between hope and fear, between light and darkness.
There is no
better model for us than Mary in opening ourselves to God’s plan for our
lives. We know at the Annunciation when
the angel Gabriel announced to Mary that she was to be the mother of our Savior
and Lord, Mary worked through her fear and confusion and said YES to God’s plan
for her. With such an inspiring faith,
Mary spoke these powerful words: “I am
the handmaid of the Lord. Be it done to
me according to thy Word.”
Can we with
Mary speak these words at the beginning of 2023: “I am the servant of the Lord. Be it done to me according to your word.”
In contrast
to the usual frenzy of our celebrations on New Years’ Eve, Mary pondered in
silence and stillness in the Bethlehem crib.
“Mary kept all these things, pondering on them in her heart.” Her heart becomes the place of discovering
Jesus, and who He truly is.
May we too
ponder in our hearts who that child now born to us really is. To ponder means
more than thinking, organizing, worrying, doing, procrastinating, scurrying,
etc. To ponder means that we pray with a
faith-filled heart over the joys and the struggles and challenges of the
day. It means to meditate, quiet down
and know we are surrounded by God’s unending love. We give thanks for the blessings of the
day. May we commit ourselves again to
imitating her openness to God’s will and her love for Christ and His Church.
As Mary spent her life pondering the visible
Word of God that was and is her Son, we too must ponder that Word in scripture,
that Word in each other, that Word in the created world around us. We too are asked to incarnate Jesus in our
lives.
As we begin
2023, we ask for the grace to use the gift of time that is given in this New Year. As we name our resolutions for the New Year,
we get sense of how we wish to use the gift and what are our priorities for the
year.
For myself,
I hope to part with a few more pounds this year, to spend more time with family
and friends, to live more fully with an attitude of gratitude, and to spend
more time with the Lord in quiet prayer.
These are
noble goals, are they not.
Our
resolutions are filled with our dreams and hopes and goals for the coming
year. But the question that the
Scriptures today invite us to reflect on is:
What is God’s plan for us this year?
Instead of focusing on our resolutions for the New Year, may we be open
to God’s resolutions for us this year.
This is such
a fundamental spiritual conversion the Scriptures call us to. How do we become more aware of God’s plan for
us in 2023? Instead of naming my
resolutions for the coming year, I seek to listen to God’s resolutions for me
this coming year.
Reflecting
on the Christmas mystery, imagine yourself as the inn keeper who decides if
there is room in the inn of your heart for Jesus? I invite you to ponder this resolution
question again and again in 2023? Does
the way I live my life reflect there is room for Jesus within me.
Do I make
time for daily prayer? Is there is room
in the inn of my heart for Jesus if I am too busy to pray even for a few
minutes each day?
Do I have
time to be present to my family, to friends, to neighbors? Is there room in the inn of my heart for
Jesus if I am too busy to be present and really listen to people?
Do I use and
share the God-given talents and resources that I have to serve and minister in
the lives of others? Is there in the inn
of my heart to serve Jesus as HE is discovered in the lives of those around us?
How do I
make a difference in the lives of the poor and people in need both in our
community and in our world? Is there room
in the inn of my heart for Jesus if I do not reach out in service to people in
need?
There is no
better model for us than Mary in opening ourselves to God’s plan for our
lives. We know at the Annunciation when
the angel Gabriel announced to Mary that she was to be the mother of our Savior
and Lord, Mary worked through her fear and confusion and said YES to God’s plan
for her. With such an inspiring faith,
Mary spoke these powerful words: “I am
the handmaid of the Lord. Be it done to
me according to thy Word.”
May the blessing that the Lord said to Moses be the blessing
the Lord speaks to each of us:
The Lord bless and keep you.
The Lord let his face shine upon you and be gracious to you.
The Lord look upon you kindly and give you peace.
Have a
blessed day and a blessed New Year.
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