{"id":2191,"date":"2007-12-31T11:55:00","date_gmt":"2007-12-31T11:55:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/deaconsbench\/2007\/12\/homily-for-january-1-2008-mary-the-mother-of-god.html"},"modified":"2007-12-31T11:55:00","modified_gmt":"2007-12-31T11:55:00","slug":"homily-for-january-1-2008-mary-the-mother-of-god","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2007\/12\/homily-for-january-1-2008-mary-the-mother-of-god.html","title":{"rendered":"Homily for January 1, 2008: Mary, the Mother of God"},"content":{"rendered":"

Years ago, my wife and I decided, just once, to spend New Year\u2019s Eve in Times Square. <\/p>\n

<\/a>We weren\u2019t brave enough to stand outside in the cold with noisemakers and funny hats. Instead, we got a package at the Marriott, and had dinner in a ballroom overlooking the square, and at midnight, the whole place went crazy. The confetti, the balloons, the blizzard of paper cascading outside our window, the hundreds of thousands of screaming people outside \u2013 shivering and celebrating and having the time of their lives. There is nothing quite like it. <\/p>\n

The next morning, we walked to the subway to come back to Queens and it was eerie. Times Square on the morning after New Year\u2019s Eve is a very different place \u2013 almost a ghost town \u2013 but I was impressed at how incredibly clean it was. The crews had worked through the night and aside from a lot of paper, it was surprisingly orderly. Almost as if nothing had happened the night before. <\/p>\n

That is how we try to see our life at new year\u2019s \u2013 almost as if nothing had happened before. We\u2019re starting over. Let the street sweepers come in and let\u2019s begin again. <\/p>\n

There\u2019s a song by Natasha Bedingfield that captures that kind of spirit. The song is called \u201cUnwritten.\u201d <\/p>\n

In part, it says: <\/p>\n

\u201cDrench yourself in words unspoken.
Live your life with arms wide open.
Today is where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I think it\u2019s a wonderful way to think about your life \u2013 and for us, today, to think about the beginning of a new year. <\/p>\n

Because today is where our book begins. The rest is still unwritten. <\/p>\n

New Year\u2019s Day is when nothing can go wrong. This is the moment when everything is possible. Every page of the calendar is blank. Every diet is successful. Every closet can be organized. Every checkbook can be balanced. Here and now we begin anew. <\/p>\n

How appropriate, then, that the Church in her wisdom has dedicated this particular moment in time to Our Lady, as we mark the feast of Mary the Mother of God.<\/p>\n

In Mary, we see the ultimate vessel of possibility. In her, the world was given a new start. A clean slate. Mary\u2019s own purity represents God\u2019s giving us all a second chance. <\/p>\n

Mary is often called the New Eve. And the world, in these early hours of this new year, is our new Eden. <\/p>\n

On this day, we can fight any temptation. At least until it comes time for desert. <\/p>\n

But for now, something wonderful is beginning. <\/p>\n

You can see it in the gospel reading we just heard, too. In this gospel, the great event that Mary helped fulfill \u2013 the nativity, the birth of the savior \u2013 is over. But the shepherds have arrived at the stable to see for themselves what the angel told them. And when they have seen it, they cannot contain themselves. <\/p>\n

As Luke explains it: <\/p>\n

\u201cThey made known the message that had been told them about this child. All who heard it were amazed by what had been told them by the shepherds.\u201d <\/p>\n

We hear a lot these days about the New Evangelization. Right here is the original version, because with this moment, the shepherds have become the very FIRST evangelists — the first to spread the news about Jesus Christ. This is the start of the great work that would transform the world \u2013 work that would touch billions of lives, including every one in this church. <\/p>\n

But here, with the shepherds, is where it all began. <\/p>\n

Mary, meantime, absorbs this, and makes of it a kind of prayer \u2013 keeping all these things, and in Luke\u2019s beautiful words, \u201creflecting on them in her heart.\u201d <\/p>\n

It\u2019s customary on this day to draw up resolutions \u2013 to make promises to ourselves and to others that probably won\u2019t last until February, if they even make it to the end of this week. We resolve to lose weight or stop smoking or exercise. What it really means is that we resolve to improve the profit margins of Jenny Craig or Lucille Roberts. <\/p>\n

Good luck with that. <\/p>\n

But this January first, I would challenge you to make a different kind of resolution. <\/p>\n

Resolve to learn something from the woman we honor today. <\/p>\n

Resolve to dwell in possibility. Resolve to see every day, not just this one, as a fresh beginning. Resolve to welcome every blank page, every new start, with trust that God will see you through it \u2013 and then reflect on it in your heart. Just like Mary did. <\/p>\n

Today we celebrate Mary the Mother of God \u2013 Mary the mother of our salvation. Mary, the one who gave birth to a new beginning. <\/p>\n

Resolve to embrace what she represents. Resolve to count every day \u2013 and to make every day count. <\/p>\n

Because \u201cToday is where your book begins. The rest is still unwritten.\u201d <\/p>\n

How will you fill the pages of your book?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Years ago, my wife and I decided, just once, to spend New Year\u2019s Eve in Times Square. We weren\u2019t brave enough to stand outside in the cold with noisemakers and funny hats. Instead, we got a package at the Marriott, and had dinner in a ballroom overlooking the square, and at midnight, the whole place…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":365,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2191","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-homilies"],"yoast_head":"\nHomily for January 1, 2008: Mary, the Mother of God - The Deacon's Bench<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2007\/12\/homily-for-january-1-2008-mary-the-mother-of-god.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Homily for January 1, 2008: Mary, the Mother of God - The Deacon's Bench\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Years ago, my wife and I decided, just once, to spend New Year\u2019s Eve in Times Square. We weren\u2019t brave enough to stand outside in the cold with noisemakers and funny hats. Instead, we got a package at the Marriott, and had dinner in a ballroom overlooking the square, and at midnight, the whole place…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2007\/12\/homily-for-january-1-2008-mary-the-mother-of-god.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Deacon's Bench\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2007-12-31T11:55:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/2.bp.blogspot.com\/_0DySLTT4PWo\/R3kgYomEDAI\/AAAAAAAABvs\/msIBJc86HLE\/s320\/TimesSquare.gif\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"deacon greg kandra\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Homily for January 1, 2008: Mary, the Mother of God - The Deacon's Bench","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2007\/12\/homily-for-january-1-2008-mary-the-mother-of-god.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Homily for January 1, 2008: Mary, the Mother of God - The Deacon's Bench","og_description":"Years ago, my wife and I decided, just once, to spend New Year\u2019s Eve in Times Square. We weren\u2019t brave enough to stand outside in the cold with noisemakers and funny hats. Instead, we got a package at the Marriott, and had dinner in a ballroom overlooking the square, and at midnight, the whole place…","og_url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2007\/12\/homily-for-january-1-2008-mary-the-mother-of-god.html","og_site_name":"The Deacon's Bench","article_published_time":"2007-12-31T11:55:00+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/2.bp.blogspot.com\/_0DySLTT4PWo\/R3kgYomEDAI\/AAAAAAAABvs\/msIBJc86HLE\/s320\/TimesSquare.gif"}],"author":"deacon greg kandra","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2007\/12\/homily-for-january-1-2008-mary-the-mother-of-god.html","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2007\/12\/homily-for-january-1-2008-mary-the-mother-of-god.html","name":"Homily for January 1, 2008: Mary, the Mother of God - The Deacon's Bench","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2007\/12\/homily-for-january-1-2008-mary-the-mother-of-god.html#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2007\/12\/homily-for-january-1-2008-mary-the-mother-of-god.html#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/2.bp.blogspot.com\/_0DySLTT4PWo\/R3kgYomEDAI\/AAAAAAAABvs\/msIBJc86HLE\/s320\/TimesSquare.gif","datePublished":"2007-12-31T11:55:00+00:00","dateModified":"2007-12-31T11:55:00+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/#\/schema\/person\/052b8cd86cc713feaccdc8282b03cf10"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2007\/12\/homily-for-january-1-2008-mary-the-mother-of-god.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2007\/12\/homily-for-january-1-2008-mary-the-mother-of-god.html"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2007\/12\/homily-for-january-1-2008-mary-the-mother-of-god.html#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/2.bp.blogspot.com\/_0DySLTT4PWo\/R3kgYomEDAI\/AAAAAAAABvs\/msIBJc86HLE\/s320\/TimesSquare.gif","contentUrl":"http:\/\/2.bp.blogspot.com\/_0DySLTT4PWo\/R3kgYomEDAI\/AAAAAAAABvs\/msIBJc86HLE\/s320\/TimesSquare.gif"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2007\/12\/homily-for-january-1-2008-mary-the-mother-of-god.html#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Homily for January 1, 2008: Mary, the Mother of God"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/","name":"The Deacon's Bench","description":"Where a Roman Catholic Deacon Ponders the World","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/#\/schema\/person\/052b8cd86cc713feaccdc8282b03cf10","name":"deacon greg kandra","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/a4e\/a4e07ce6fde3f10d4d9753243fd48d45x96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/a4e\/a4e07ce6fde3f10d4d9753243fd48d45x96.jpg","caption":"deacon greg kandra"},"url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/author\/deacon-greg-kandra"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2191","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/365"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2191"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2191\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2191"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2191"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2191"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}