In With the New
Happy New Year! On January 1st, the Church celebrates the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God. How wonderful is it that we are reminded on the first day of the year, on the day we embrace new beginnings, that we are not alone, that we indeed have a mother, a Mother in heaven who constantly prays for us and brings our needs before her Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ. How amazing is that!
During New Year celebrations and other times when we celebrate new beginnings, we often hear the saying, “out with the old, in with the new.” Of course this saying is telling us to leave behind whatever is bad or upsetting and move forward in hope, in the hope that this new beginning will bring good things and good outcomes. However, I’d like to invite you to not necessarily completely be “out with the old,” in that let us not simply think whatever bad that happened did not happen, but let us instead allow the past to usher in the new. Let us not forget the past because without the past our present and future would have no meaning. Things are only better because we have the past to see how far we have come. Without the old, we would not appreciate the new. Hence, the Church Fathers remind us that our faith, our life in Christ is “ever ancient, ever new.” We must embrace both the old and the new because that is who we are.
On the last day of the year, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI was called home to the Father. As I reflect on his life and pontificate, I am brought back to memories of the final days of Pope John Paul II’s life. I watched his funeral on TV and I remember how then Cardinal Ratzinger led the faithful in celebrating the late Pope’s life. Days later he was elected Pope. A few years later he made his Apostolic Visit to the United States. Pope Benedict XVI’s papacy was one that was a silent, quiet one, right after the long and extensive papacy of JPII. A silent but consequential papacy. Pope Benedict XVI was a scholar, a theologian, and a humble servant who labored extensively in the vineyard of the Lord, knowing that he needed not see the harvest to labor well — something we ought to remind ourselves often. We labor primarily not for gains or to receive praise and accolades, but for that to which we have been called.
As we begin this new year, let us yes, leave behind all of our sadness and disappointments, but let us learn from them and allow them to propel us into the new year, so that as we embrace “in with the new” we might remember who we are, where we are from, how far we have come, and know that we are not alone on this journey this new year, for Our Mother Mary walks with us.
Happy New Year!
