(Mary, the Mother of God 2022: This homily was given on January 1, 2022 at St. Pius X Church, Westerly, R.I., by Fr. Raymond Suriani. Read Numbers 6:22-27; Psalm 67:2-8; Galatians 4:4-7; Luke 2:16-21.)
[For the audio version of this homily, click here: Mary, the Mother of God 2022]
We begin this year—we begin EVERY year—with Mary, our
Blessed Mother.
I don’t think that’s a coincidence. I think the Holy Spirit, working through the
Church, has us honor our Lady every January 1 for a reason. I think the Holy Spirit has us honor our Lady
every New Year’s Day because Mary reminds us of certain truths—certain
ideas—that should guide us throughout the year.
For example, Mary reminds us that our intention each
and every day of each and every year should be to do the perfect and holy will
of God. “Be it done unto me according to
your word” was not only Mary’s response to the Lord at the Annunciation; it was
her response to the Lord at every single moment of her earthly life! That’s why we honor her above all the other
saints.
If we’re going to do God’s will faithfully in our
lives, then we, like Mary, need to be seeking holiness more than anything
else. That’s something else our Lady
reminds us of. Of course, since none of
us is perfect in this regard, we need to make a habit of going to confession on
a regular basis. We can’t grow in
holiness if we’re not seeking forgiveness for our sins regularly—at least every
couple of months or so.
Mary also reminds us of the importance of prayer—and
of reflecting on our lives when we pray.
In today’s gospel, St. Luke tells us that our Blessed Mother “kept all
these things and reflected on them in her heart.” These “things” were the events surrounding
our Lord’s birth. Mary prayed about
these events, asking the Father to help her understand his salvific plan and
how she fit into it.
Mary also reminds us that suffering is a part of
life—even if you’re the greatest of saints; even if you’re the holiest human
person who ever lived on planet earth.
Mary, as we all know, was perfect—she was without sin—and yet, a “sword”
of suffering pierced her soul during the passion and death of her Son, just as
Simeon had predicted it would. Her moral
perfection did not mean she was exempt from trial.
So obviously we should not expect to have a pain-free
life in 2022 or in any other year! Mary
certainly didn’t expect that for herself. But we SHOULD expect God’s grace to help us
deal with our pain and suffering, as his grace helped Mary deal with hers. No doubt Mary sought that grace as she
prayerfully reflected on the events of her life—especially the events
surrounding our Lord’s birth and death.
In her popular song, “Breath of Heaven,” Amy Grant
puts some beautiful words on the lips of our Blessed Mother that make this point. The words are the words of a prayer for
strength and help: a prayer from Mary to the Holy Spirit:
Breath
of heaven
Hold me together
Be forever near me
Breath of heaven
Breath of heaven
light in my darkness
Pour over me your holiness
For you are holy
These are just a few of the reasons why it is good—and why it is
fitting—for us to begin every year with Mary.
She teaches us, by her words and example, how to approach the next 365
days. She teaches us to make every
effort to do the will of God. She
teaches us to seek holiness and to go to confession regularly. She teaches us to pray daily, to reflect on
the events of our lives, and to seek the Lord’s help confidently in the midst
of our sufferings and trials. Of course,
ultimately the Church has us begin each year with Mary so that someday we will
END with Mary—so that someday we will end our lives with her, in that Kingdom
that Jesus Christ her Son died and rose from the dead to give to her and to give
to all of us.
