20210101 NEWNESS OF THE NEW YEAR IS THAT WE ARE A NEW CREATION
01 January, 2021, Friday, Mary, Mother of God
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour: White.
First reading | Numbers 6:22-27 © |
They are to call down my name on the sons of Israel, and I will bless them
The Lord spoke to Moses and said, ‘Say this to Aaron and his sons: “This is how you are to bless the sons of Israel. You shall say to them:
May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord let his face shine on you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord uncover his face to you and bring you peace.”
This is how they are to call down my name on the sons of Israel, and I will bless them.’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 66(67):2-3,5,6,8 © |
O God, be gracious and bless us.
O God, be gracious and bless us
and let your face shed its light upon us.
So will your ways be known upon earth
and all nations learn your saving help.
O God, be gracious and bless us.
Let the nations be glad and exult
for you rule the world with justice.
With fairness you rule the peoples,
you guide the nations on earth.
O God, be gracious and bless us.
Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you.
May God still give us his blessing
till the ends of the earth revere him.
O God, be gracious and bless us.
Second reading | Galatians 4:4-7 © |
God sent his Son, born of a woman
When the appointed time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born a subject of the Law, to redeem the subjects of the Law and to enable us to be adopted as sons. The proof that you are sons is that God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts: the Spirit that cries, ‘Abba, Father’, and it is this that makes you a son, you are not a slave any more; and if God has made you son, then he has made you heir.
Gospel Acclamation | Heb1:1-2 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
At various times in the past
and in various different ways,
God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets;
but in our own time, the last days,
he has spoken to us through his Son.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 2:16-21 © |
The shepherds hurried to Bethlehem and found the baby lying in the manger
The shepherds hurried away to Bethlehem and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. When they saw the child they repeated what they had been told about him, and everyone who heard it was astonished at what the shepherds had to say. As for Mary, she treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds went back glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen; it was exactly as they had been told.
When the eighth day came and the child was to be circumcised, they gave him the name Jesus, the name the angel had given him before his conception.
NEWNESS OF THE NEW YEAR IS THAT WE ARE A NEW CREATION
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [NUMBERS 6:22-27; GALATIANS 4:4-7; LUKE 2:16-21]
We are celebrating the beginning of the New Year with the Solemnity of Mary the Mother of God. The first day of the year is also celebrated by the Church as the World Day of Peace. How do we bring these three events together? The first is merely a secular event of commemorating the first day of the calendar year, the second is a liturgical event and the third is both secular and also deeply spiritual since peace is desired by every human person and every nation. These three celebrations can be brought under the theme of Newness.
What is so new about the New Year? It is new insofar as it is a new day at the beginning of another year, as established by the Gregorian Calendar, even though the world gives it a secular name of “Common Era”, as secularists seek to dissociate anything that smacks of religious affiliation. Yet, the truth remains that the so-called Common Era is historically linked to the Christian Year which we call, B.C “Before Christ” which the world now called BCE “Before Common Era and AD, “After Christ”. Whether, we like it or not, the truth remains that with the coming of Christ, the world has been radically transformed and re-oriented. Clearly, there is a distinction before Christ and after Christ.
This is what St Paul meant when he wrote, “when the appointed time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born a subject of the Law, to redeem the subjects of the Law and to enable us to be adopted as sons.” This appointed time refers to the incarnation, birth, passion and death of our Lord. Christ’s coming has made the world new and creation is once again given a new direction after losing its way because of sin. Indeed, before the coming of Christ, after the sin of Adam and Eve, the world started to lose its purpose and direction in life. Sin has resulted in disorder, killing and immorality. Adam belonged to the old creation. He failed to observe the law of God and brought about the Fall. Since then, humanity has degenerated in moral values. There is no peace but division.
Over the history of humanity, God sought to keep His people in grace by giving them chance after chance, by giving them a new beginning. This began with the Covenant with Noah and then Abraham and finally with Moses. With Moses, the Old Covenant was established with Israel being the Chosen People of God, destined to lead the world back to God. “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the survivors of Israel; I will give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” (Isa 49:6) But on hindsight, God was actually preparing Israel who behaved like a child to full maturity in Christ. (cf Gal 4:1-3)
What did Christ’s coming do to transform humanity and the world? We have become a New Creation. He made us sharers of God’s divine nature and life, without us becoming God. The term St Paul used is adoption as God’s children. In Christ, we are no longer just creatures of God or even just the sons of Israel, but we are God’s children in Christ. Christ established a new order which overwrote the old order in Adam. Jesus is the Son of God whereas Adam was only God’s creation. Jesus did not come from Adam but from the New Eve, unlike the Old Eve who came from the side of Adam. Eve was responsible for the Fall because of her disobedience to God. The New Eve, Mary, made it possible for Christ’s coming to save us because of her obedience to God and to the Law.
So we are now God’s adopted sons and daughters. We have regained our dignity as God’s children, which Adam lost because of sin. The incarnation and the birth of our Lord prepared the world to be recreated in Christ so that we can realize the original plan that God had for us. In Christ’s birth and His assumption of our humanity, He made it possible for us to be raised to share in His divine life. Indeed, God became man in Jesus so that we can become God’s children in Him. And this privilege is given to all who are baptized in Christ Jesus. It is no longer, as in the Old Covenant, confined to a particular race, the Jews. This is because in Christ, we are no longer subjects under the law but in Christ.
How is this possible? How did Jesus free us from the Old Law and make us all, Jews and Gentiles alike, adopted children of God? Firstly, by assuming our humanity, He elevated us to share in His divinity. This is why today the Church commemorates the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God. In this dogma declared in the Council of Ephesus in 431 AD, Jesus is called the “theotokos” the “God-bearer”. Jesus is one person, God and man at the same time. Jesus was truly the Son of God and the Son of Mary. We are speaking of the same person who had both divine and human natures. Hence, as God, Jesus was not bound by the Law. He was not a subject of the Law as He belonged to God. By sharing in the life of Christ, we too are freed from being subjects of the Law. We are not slaves of the Law because we share in the life of Christ.
Secondly, unlike Jesus, we all stand condemned because of our sins. We all live under the curse of the Law because we cannot keep the Law perfectly. Jesus showed us how to keep the Law because He lived the Law perfectly in His life. But He did not obey the Law so that He could earn His salvation. Rather, His obedience to the Law was an expression of His love for His Father. Even though Jesus could keep the Law perfectly, He carried within Himself the conditions of sinful humanity. He was subjected to the same temptations, suffering, loneliness, betrayal and disappointments. Although divine, He was fully human, sharing in our humanity and struggles so that He can lead us to overcome our sins, lest we say that we cannot overcome temptations because we are not divine like Him. The truth is that He did God’s divine will by using His human will in response to His Father’s love.
Indeed, the great thing about Jesus was that He fulfilled the Law perfectly whilst carrying our human weaknesses in Him. This is why St Paul said, He redeemed those under the Law so that we can receive our full adoption as God’s sons and daughters. As God, Jesus gave us His Spirit of sonship. As man, He was able to represent us all and redeem humanity. And we know that we are set free from the Law because of His Spirit living in us. St Paul wrote, “The proof that you are sons is that God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts: the Spirit that cries, ‘Abba, Father’, and it is this that makes you a son, you are not a slave anymore; and if God has made you son, then he has made you heir.” It is the bestowal of God’s Spirit that makes us His adopted sons and daughters. This is what makes New Year really new! We are a new creation in Christ chosen for God. (cf Eph 2:10) This is the “hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints.” (Eph 1:18)
Consequently, we are now required to live as God’s sons and daughters. The gospel gives us a picture of how Christ the Son of God chose to be born in poverty.The King of Kings was not born in the palace but in a manger, resting on a feeding-trough for cattle as there was no place for Him in the inn. Unlike Matthew, in Luke’s gospel, He was stripped of every comfort and was without any gifts. God wants to be identified with us in our humanity so that He can teach us the true meaning of sonship, which is to live in solidarity with our brothers and sisters, those who are poor and suffering. We are called to be like Jesus living for others, sharing in the lives of others, lifting up their suffering and helping them to find their true identity in Christ so that they too can truly live a dignified life in Christ and be set free from sin and slavery to the world. Clear of our calling to share in God’s life and love, we live with purpose, direction and also with the power that comes from the Spirit of Christ, empowering us to live out our sonship so that we bring true peace and justice in this world.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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