Happy New Year 2008
Happy New Year my dear brothers and sisters,
The name "January" comes from the Roman god Janus, the god with two faces, one looking to the past and the other looking to the future. This is indeed a time to look back at the year 2007 that has just ended and to look forward to the New Year 2008 ahead of us.
There are people who tell you that there is no point making New Year resolutions. Do not believe them. We must set goals and make resolutions as a necessary conclusion to our review of the past year. And we do need to review our lives from year to year because, as Socrates says, the unexamined life is not worth living.
I have five suggestions for the New Year for all of us. First one is; we try to learn something. Look at the year past. Did you learn anything? In the movie “Rudy” a priest is saying; “In my thirty years as a priest, I have learned two things. There is a God and it’s not me.” That’s not a bad lesson for all of us. Try to learn something from the year past.
The second thing I would suggest is to see if you can let go of a lot of garbage (resentments, angers, what if, if-only). You can’t let go of it. I remember the story of a lady who moved from her small apartment to a brand new house and the movers came in and they said, “What do you want to move?” And she said, “Take everything.” They took her seriously. When she moved into her beautiful new house there was trash. There was garbage. There were orange peels. There were empty bottles. There were old newspapers. They took everything and they moved it along to her new house. Don’t take everything into the New Year. See if you can let go of some of the garbage.
Getting rid of all the old, hung-onto, grief and grievances is like you feel lighter, the world brighter and you, more in control. You just feel incredibly free and relieved. Sing with me if you know this small song:
Let go and Let God has its wonderful way; Let go and Let God has its way;
Your sorrows will vanish, your nights turn to day; Let go and Let God has its way.
Thirdly, look forward to a lot. Our world, we ourselves have a long way to go. And look forward to it with hope.
Fourthly start and live every single day with happiness and joy.
How many times did you hear Happy New Year today? How many times did you give that same greeting to others? Was it just a conventional greeting or was it a real wish? In other words is it really possible to find happiness in the New Year?
It would be a mistake, of course, to expect perfect happiness this year or any year in this life. As St. Augustine said, “Lord, you have made us for yourself and our hearts are restless until they rest in Thee.” But there is a deep, lasting peace that everyone can have in this life.
Happiness consists not in amassing possessions. If things could make people happy, Americans would be the happiest people in the world. We have more things than any other generation. Unfortunately we begin by possessing things and end up with things possessing us. It is the desire, the craving for things we do not have that causes so much unhappiness. We are supposed to love people and use things. In our affluent society we turn that around and love things and use people to get the things we love.
We cannot find happiness by seeking it. The fact of the matter is, the moment you seek it you lose it. Happiness is always a by-product, green stamps, and lagniappe (lan-yap).
But what is happiness a by-product of? What is it that has happiness as a side effect? The answer is to be found in Bethlehem. Let us go to Bethlehem to see what it is. Look into the cave. Take your eyes away from the beautiful babe wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger and look around. There is none of those things in which we seek happiness. There is no riches, no fame, no power, no conveniences, no pleasure, nothing but an empty, cold cave on the outskirts of town.
Now look at Mary and Joseph kneeling before the manger. They must be tired. They have traveled 75 miles or so from Nazareth to Bethlehem on foot and on the jolting back of a donkey. They must be very hungry. They haven’t had a real meal since they left Nazareth some 3 days ago. They must be cold in this damp cave in the midst of winter. It must have been very humiliating for them to discover no room among their relatives in their ancestral home or at the village Inn.
Yet in the midst of all of this, Mary and Joseph are the happiest people to walk the face of this earth. Here in Bethlehem they are teaching us the amazing paradox that it is only when we lose ourselves in the love and service of Jesus do we find happiness. Happiness that this world can never give and no one can take from us. But how can we lose ourselves in the love and service of Jesus? Jesus has made it very simple, “Whatever you do for one of these least brethren you do for me.”
And finally, do not close the heart but pray for the light. Let us take a real example. You are here listening to me; I am certain most of you are not following me because of my Indian accent and poor English. You have two options; one you can open your heart and listen and after few minutes or times you could follow; or you can close your heart totally and start reading the bulletin or go out and have a cup of coffee. It is same in our families; we could either listen to them and can change our attitude or we can close our heart and keep the revenge.
Yes dear brothers and sisters, and that is what the New Year is all about . . . the clean mind and the open heart. .. And the new life that Jesus gave to us. So I wish you a very happy, joyous, healthy and blessed New Year: may we all live our lives to the fullest degree, rejoicing in the great gift of newness and renewal that Christ’s birth brings to us each year.
A M E N.
Happy New Year my dear brothers and sisters,
The name "January" comes from the Roman god Janus, the god with two faces, one looking to the past and the other looking to the future. This is indeed a time to look back at the year 2007 that has just ended and to look forward to the New Year 2008 ahead of us.
There are people who tell you that there is no point making New Year resolutions. Do not believe them. We must set goals and make resolutions as a necessary conclusion to our review of the past year. And we do need to review our lives from year to year because, as Socrates says, the unexamined life is not worth living.
I have five suggestions for the New Year for all of us. First one is; we try to learn something. Look at the year past. Did you learn anything? In the movie “Rudy” a priest is saying; “In my thirty years as a priest, I have learned two things. There is a God and it’s not me.” That’s not a bad lesson for all of us. Try to learn something from the year past.
The second thing I would suggest is to see if you can let go of a lot of garbage (resentments, angers, what if, if-only). You can’t let go of it. I remember the story of a lady who moved from her small apartment to a brand new house and the movers came in and they said, “What do you want to move?” And she said, “Take everything.” They took her seriously. When she moved into her beautiful new house there was trash. There was garbage. There were orange peels. There were empty bottles. There were old newspapers. They took everything and they moved it along to her new house. Don’t take everything into the New Year. See if you can let go of some of the garbage.
Getting rid of all the old, hung-onto, grief and grievances is like you feel lighter, the world brighter and you, more in control. You just feel incredibly free and relieved. Sing with me if you know this small song:
Let go and Let God has its wonderful way; Let go and Let God has its way;
Your sorrows will vanish, your nights turn to day; Let go and Let God has its way.
Thirdly, look forward to a lot. Our world, we ourselves have a long way to go. And look forward to it with hope.
Fourthly start and live every single day with happiness and joy.
How many times did you hear Happy New Year today? How many times did you give that same greeting to others? Was it just a conventional greeting or was it a real wish? In other words is it really possible to find happiness in the New Year?
It would be a mistake, of course, to expect perfect happiness this year or any year in this life. As St. Augustine said, “Lord, you have made us for yourself and our hearts are restless until they rest in Thee.” But there is a deep, lasting peace that everyone can have in this life.
Happiness consists not in amassing possessions. If things could make people happy, Americans would be the happiest people in the world. We have more things than any other generation. Unfortunately we begin by possessing things and end up with things possessing us. It is the desire, the craving for things we do not have that causes so much unhappiness. We are supposed to love people and use things. In our affluent society we turn that around and love things and use people to get the things we love.
We cannot find happiness by seeking it. The fact of the matter is, the moment you seek it you lose it. Happiness is always a by-product, green stamps, and lagniappe (lan-yap).
But what is happiness a by-product of? What is it that has happiness as a side effect? The answer is to be found in Bethlehem. Let us go to Bethlehem to see what it is. Look into the cave. Take your eyes away from the beautiful babe wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in the manger and look around. There is none of those things in which we seek happiness. There is no riches, no fame, no power, no conveniences, no pleasure, nothing but an empty, cold cave on the outskirts of town.
Now look at Mary and Joseph kneeling before the manger. They must be tired. They have traveled 75 miles or so from Nazareth to Bethlehem on foot and on the jolting back of a donkey. They must be very hungry. They haven’t had a real meal since they left Nazareth some 3 days ago. They must be cold in this damp cave in the midst of winter. It must have been very humiliating for them to discover no room among their relatives in their ancestral home or at the village Inn.
Yet in the midst of all of this, Mary and Joseph are the happiest people to walk the face of this earth. Here in Bethlehem they are teaching us the amazing paradox that it is only when we lose ourselves in the love and service of Jesus do we find happiness. Happiness that this world can never give and no one can take from us. But how can we lose ourselves in the love and service of Jesus? Jesus has made it very simple, “Whatever you do for one of these least brethren you do for me.”
And finally, do not close the heart but pray for the light. Let us take a real example. You are here listening to me; I am certain most of you are not following me because of my Indian accent and poor English. You have two options; one you can open your heart and listen and after few minutes or times you could follow; or you can close your heart totally and start reading the bulletin or go out and have a cup of coffee. It is same in our families; we could either listen to them and can change our attitude or we can close our heart and keep the revenge.
Yes dear brothers and sisters, and that is what the New Year is all about . . . the clean mind and the open heart. .. And the new life that Jesus gave to us. So I wish you a very happy, joyous, healthy and blessed New Year: may we all live our lives to the fullest degree, rejoicing in the great gift of newness and renewal that Christ’s birth brings to us each year.
A M E N.
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