God has given us another year !

Dear Rev. Fathers, Brothers, Sisters and Lay faithful,

God has given us another year ! The start of a new year can be exciting and overwhelming, especially during these uncertain times. Yet, we must remind ourselves that God will be with us, no matter what lies ahead. The words of St Paul to Philippians can be very encouraging: “I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me” (Phil. 3: 12-14). That is the true Christian attitude we all must own as we enter the New Year !

Nonetheless, some of us might feel that we simply exist in life, going through the motions without understanding what it all means. But if we start to live a purpose-driven life, we will start to find meaning in every moment of our life. In such life, we will learn to see the glory of God everywhere, deepen our love for others and find the unique service we were made for. That is precisely why God has given us another year ! We need to be grateful to God that we are able to step into this New Year amid uncertainties and fear wreaked by the pandemic and its new strain. God has been with us along the way, helping us to withstand and face the challenges and He will continue to be with us !

Life is about accepting the challenges along the way, choosing to move forward, and savouring the journey. Challenges become opportunities when our visions are clear. What we need to do is to change our perspectives. When we change our perspectives, challenges become opportunities. As Winston Churchill said, “the pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; the optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” Nobody can get through life without facing challenges. What is important is how we handle them. Once we handle the challenges with the right attitude, “the bigger the challenge, the greater the opportunity for growth.” Tough times can be excellent opportunities to bring out the best in us. “Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all,” says Dale Carnegie. Being challenged is inevitable, but being defeated is optional.

God planned our life and designed us perfectly to fulfill his purposes. Every aspect of our life is a gift. We cannot repay God for all he has given us, but we can express our gratitude by putting God and his purposes at the centre of our life in this New Year. On this occasion it is worth recalling the words of Pope Francis’ New Year message in 2014 who invited the faithful to entrust their hearts to Mary, to look on her as a Mother to all and to see her as a messenger of hope. He gave a clarion call to the faithful to entrust to her our journey of faith, the desires of our heart, challenges of our life, our needs and the needs of the whole world, and it is very befitting especially of those who reel under the havoc wreaked by pandemic and other predicaments in life.

Celebrating the solemnity of the Feast of Mary, the Mother of God on the very first day of the year is very appropriate to begin the New Year. This celebration reminds us that the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, is also our Heavenly Mother. Mary is our Mother, ever since Jesus, dying on the cross, gave her to us as our Mother, saying: “Behold, your Mother” (Jn 19:27). Let us begin this New Year beholding our Mother. The Church puts the feast of this solemnity on the first day of the New Year to emphasize the importance of Mary’s role in the life of Christ and the Church. We commemorate the various saints on different days of the year, but Mary is the most prominent of them all. In celebrating her special feast day, we acknowledge this great gift for the Church and world; we call on her to be actively involved in our daily life; we imitate her virtuous life as a great inspiration, and we cooperate with all the graces we get through her. She is a perfect model who surmounted the life difficulties and challenges to fulfil the plan of God.

The words of Saint John Paul II in 1982 remind us, “From the time when the disciple took her to his own home, the mystery of the spiritual motherhood of Mary has been actualized boundlessly in history. Motherhood means caring for the life of the child. Since Mary is the mother of us all, her care for the life of man is universal” he said. If we entrust ourselves to Mother Mary she will give all that we need to keep moving ahead in this year with an entire trust in God who will guide us along the way. Let us sail through the challenges of our life to reach Jesus and certainly, our blessed Mother will be an excellent guide. Ad Jesum per Mariam! To Jesus through Mary! Hope smiles from the threshold of the year to come, whispering it will be happier and let us take a leap of faith and begin this wondrous New Year by believing in Blessed Mary’s Motherly accompaniment.

Wishing you a New Year filled with the blessings of God. Happy New Year 2022!

Yours devotedly in Our Lord,

+ Most.Rev. S. Antonysamy
Bishop of Palayamkottai