My Dear People of God,

“A holy day has dawned upon us. Come, you nations, and adore the Lord. Today a great light has come upon the earth.”

This Gospel Acclamation of Christmas Day announces to the world that God is calling all of humanity, all nations, to adore him! It is a call to the people of our day and age, to acknowledge that, truly, “a holy day has dawned upon us in this New Year! We are invited in this New Year to: “Come and adore Him!”

The reality is: the present nations of the world have not bent their knees in humility before the Eternal God. They refuse to adore him. With hardened hearts, they refuse to acknowledge his sovereignty over their self-rule. But, with the grace and mercy that comes with the holy day mentioned in the Christmas Acclamation, we must turn away from a disordered adoration and false worship.

This fallen world replaces true worship of God with false gods: idols of celebrity, wealth and greed, materialism and consumerism, power and control, injustice, hatred, discrimination, and war. These are the false gods of the world that beg to be adored.

In this New Year, 2024, we must seek and desire, a new perspective, an attitude aligned and properly ordered, to true adoration and worship of God above all things. The nations of the world will never be able to truly change until they put their trust in God. As Jesus revealed to St. Faustina: “Mankind will not have peace until it turns with trust to My mercy.” (Diary 300) His grace and mercy will enable this disordered world to see and put things in true perspective: that God is God, and we are not God! We are not called to be gods onto ourselves. We, as Pope Francis mentions: “…are called to abandon our pretense of autonomy.” Jesus must be the Lord in all areas of our lives! Let us trust Him, and entrust all to Him, in this New Year.

May the great light, mentioned in the Acclamation illumine the minds, hearts, and very souls of our world leaders. Let us welcome the great light, Jesus, so that he may enter our lives and homes and transform us into better and more faithful worshippers who seek the God of true peace. It is a peace that is found in the One, who is Peace itself, Jesus - God with us!

May we, in this Year of the Lord 2024, integrate and be supported by the 4 spiritual pillars: believe, adore, hope, and love. These pillars can empower us to love God above all things and our neighbor as ourselves. May the love of Jesus be the driving force in our lives as we entrust all to him. May the 4 spiritual pillars strengthen the domestic church - the family - in 2024.

A holy day has truly dawned upon us as a diocese! “Come, let us adore Him!”

A Blessed and Happy New Year to all!

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