THE first day of the new year in the Catholic Church’s calendar is dedicated to Mary, the Mother of God and Mother of our Saviour.
The major feasts of the church are celebrated with an Octave – eight days of feasting and rejoicing.
The eighth day is the ‘crowning moment’ to that feast.
So for us the crowning moment to the central part of our Christmas celebrations resides in celebrating She who bore the Son of God and who with Him brings about our liberation from darkness and rebirth in grace.
The presence of a mother in a child’s life is irreplaceable.
Not only does she bring her child to birth, but so often she is the one who feeds the child (even from her body), nurtures them, holds their hand, picks them up when they fall, loves and comforts them in their distress, sees past their faults to acknowledge the good in them. This is all very natural, the way God intended it to be in our human lives.
Well, so too in our spiritual lives.
We have a Father in God, and He has given us a Mother in Mary.
We believe she nourishes us with the Word of Life, intercedes for us in our troubles, brings us to new life in Christ, helps us in our struggles.
All we need do is go to her.
Celebrating this feast on January 1 reminds us to live this new year, and each day of it, in union with Mary, our heavenly Mother.
Owen Dugan is a member of Corpus Christi Church, Wokingham, which meets at 9am and 11am on Sundays.
For information, visit: corpuschristi-wokingham.org
