How appropriate that on the first day of every year we honor Mary, the Holy Mother of God, for it was her willing obedience to God’s plan that enabled the Incarnation and therefore initiated what in time became Christianity. Today is also the World Day of Peace and so we look to Mary, the Queen of Peace—who bore the Prince of Peace—as our model and inspiration for holding peace in our hearts, our communities, and in our world.
Introduction to the Liturgy of the Word
As the new year dawns, we realize the blessings that we have been given. God blesses the Chosen People as they invoke God’s name. We are blessed as daughters and sons of God, able to call God, “Abba, Father!” Like the shepherds, who heard the message of the angels and went to find the word made flesh, let us listen to the word of God, then go forth praising and glorifying God.
Reflections
On this first day of a new year, we look forward to new beginnings, hopeful that this year will be better than the last. The Chosen People were looking forward to a new beginning in the promised land when Aaron and his sons called down God’s blessings, God’s grace, and God’s peace upon them. The shepherds realized a new beginning was taking place in Bethlehem and hurried there to see the newborn king. Mary embraced the new beginning her life had taken after she was visited by the angel. May we look forward to our new beginning, assured that we have a God with us who chose to become incarnate in the world, who chose to share in our humanity, who chose to redeem us from our sins.
The shepherds are Jesus’ first evangelizers, proclaiming the “good news of great joy” given them by the angels (Luke 2:10). Ironically, the first people they tell are Mary and Joseph themselves, who already know the good news from the angel’s visits. But now they realize that this good news is already spreading throughout the countryside, bringing great joy to those who hear it. Just as we treasure the memories not only of wonderful events but also of the way that they were shared among our loved ones, Mary treasured all that happened the night on which her Son was born.
Luke says that Mary reflected on the shepherds’ visit and their message. Reflection is a habit we seem to have lost in today’s world. Because we are constantly connected to the whole world and to everyone we know, we have developed a sense of immediacy that makes anything we learned more than a few minutes ago old news. We check for updates on our phones 24/7, obsessively watch for likes and retweets, look to see what our friends are doing. How often do we take the time to power down our electronics and spend some time in prayerful reflection? Sounds like a good resolution for 2023!
Question of the Week
• What happened in my life in 2022 that I treasure in my heart? How do I recognize God’s role in these blessings?
-from Pastoral Patterns
readings of the mass
LISTEN HEREto the Audio Recordings of the Readings of Sunday, January 1, 2023
SELECT HEREfor the Readings of Sunday, January 1, 2023
Offerings
The Sunday offerings are a portion of our blessings that we give to God (Church) in gratitude to what God has done for us...ONLINE GIVING OPTIONS
