Archbishop of Sydney

Mary, Mother of God

St. Mary’s Cathedral, Sydney
Num 6:22-7; Gal 4:4-7; Lk 2:16-21

By + Cardinal George Pell
Archbishop of Sydney
1/1/2006

We begin the New Year as always by celebrating the solemn feast of Mary, Mother of God.  As New Year’s Day is unfortunately no longer a holyday of obligation when we are obliged to attend Mass, we usually celebrate the first Sunday of each New Year with the feast of the Holy Family.  Both provide good starts for a new year.

We should dedicate ourselves and our families to Mary asking her protection during the coming year, after we have thanked God for our blessings during the past twelve months.  There are many tests we can use to judge the depth or quality of our Christian life.  Are we able to forgive others? Are we able to forgive ourselves and ask God’s forgiveness for our sins? Some are too proud to ask forgiveness, while others simply follow their conscience and declare a whole raft of sins not to be sins at all!  Another good test is whether we are regularly grateful and whether we can express this gratitude for matters large or small.

I know that some people live in very difficult situations, some of which are well known, some of which are scarcely suspected even by close friends.  Christians should not pretend that this suffering does not exist, should not turn a blind eye to trouble.  The Boxing Day tsunami a year ago was a huge and horrible example of unexpected suffering and the waves of generosity across Australia were a fitting response.

We acknowledge suffering and try to do something to help, but we see beyond and through suffering to the good things most of us enjoy in good measure.  All of us, no matter how difficult our situation, should thank for the blessings we received in 2005.  Gratitude is the mark of a good Christian and especially a good adult Christian.

The story of the cure of the ten lepers where only one came back to say thank you is a parable about all human beings, not just a few ungrateful Jews.  I suspect many of those lepers who did not return were grateful, very grateful indeed, but were too excited by their good fortune, so busy going about their business with a new lease of life, that they did not have the time to express their thanks.

The shepherds did not make that mistake because after they had seen the Christ child at Bethlehem “they went back glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen”.

So we should be grateful to all those who helped us last year and also express our thanks to God for all his blessings, not the least of which is that we live here in Australia.

We should also use this occasion to ask God’s blessing, not only on our loved ones, not only by praying for world peace, but by asking God to continue to bless our country of Australia.

I am not surprised that we have avoided further racial trouble since the Cronulla and Maroubra incidents, but we shall have to work that this continues and that the tensions below the surface can be contained and diminished.  We might pray too that the efforts to strengthen marriage and family and to reduce the annual number of abortions in Australia, presently about 90,000 a year, will bring some success.

Finally, at the start of this New Year, we should thank God for the gift of our faith.  This is not a burden, but a blessing.  Some of those without faith realise this, and want to believe.  Among those, some find it very hard to believe.  Those of us with faith should thank God for it.

As St. Paul explained to the Galatians, because God is our father, we are his sons and daughters, an unmerited dignity.  We could not have complained if God had designated us as his employees, one of billions of workers; we are more than his servants, much more than God’s slaves, we are his children, the brothers and sisters of Jesus his Son, with all the rights and dignities that children have in their families.  God knows each one of us; each one of the billions of people on the planet, better than a good father knows each of his children.  This is a fantastic truth, revealed to us by God’s own Son, and therefore to be believed.  We need faith to accept it.

We know faith is lived at a price, but it brings meaning, purpose, hope and consolation, reasons for gratitude and motives for repentance and forgiveness.

So my prayer for you all on this first day of 2006 is the Aaronic blessing given by Moses:

“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”.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.