(The following homily was given by Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde for the Mass celebrated on New Year's Day at the Cathedral of Saint Thomas More in Arlington, Virginia.)
As we Catholics begin a new civil year, along with everyone else, two things strikingly attract our attention. The first is the feast we celebrate this day, the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. The second is the annual observance today of the World Day of Peace, begun by Pope Paul VI and continued up to the present by his successor Pope John Paul II. As our Holy Father states in this year's Message for the Celebration of the World Day of Peace: “…each year I have continued this noble tradition by dedicating the first day of the civil year to reflection and to prayer for peace in the world.” (no. 1)
Mary is the Mother of God. The oldest title given to her in the history of Christianity is precisely this: “the God-bearer,” Mother of God. Yes, Mary bore the Son of God and brought Him to real people, like the shepherds in today's gospel account. Mary bore the Son of God and brought Him, who is the Prince of Peace, to us. Today's Opening Prayer summarizes this so beautifully: “…the virgin conceived and bore Your Son, who is called Wonderful God, Prince of Peace….”
How we long for peace in these days! We long for peace within ourselves, peace within our families, peace within our church and our country, and peace among nations. Again, as our Holy Father reminds us, “Humanity needs now more than ever to rediscover the path of concord, overwhelmed as it is be selfishness and hatred, by the thirst for power and the lust for vengeance.” (no. 1)
As the followers of Christ, the Prince of Peace, you and I must bring Christ and His Peace to each one of the 366 days of 2004, a leap year, which begins today. Yes, we must bring Christ and His peace to every person we meet: family members, co-workers, neighbors, parishioners and strangers. Pope John Paul II tells us that working for peace is essential to our practice of the Catholic Faith: “We Christians see the commitment to educate ourselves and others to peace as something at the very heart of our religion. For Christians, in fact, to proclaim peace is to announce Christ who is 'our peace' (Eph 2:14); it is to announce His gospel, which is a 'gospel of peace' (Eph 6:15); it is to call all people to the beatitude of being 'peacemakers' (cf Mt 5:9).” (no. 3)
Yes, on this first day of 2004, we are being called to be peacemakers, by bringing Christ, the Prince of Peace, into the real world of everyday life, as did Mary, the God-bearer. In fact, this could be " indeed, must be " the best resolution for 2004: to bring the Prince of Peace into daily life. Imagine how our relationships and interactions would be affected! There would emerge more care and respect for one another, more forgiveness and reconciliation, more hope and more love!
For us to become and to remain peacemakers, prayer is a primary ingredient. Mary, the Mother of God, is our model and example. Today's gospel account describes her as a woman of prayer: “And Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.” In prayer we reflect on God's saving Word, which shapes our minds and hearts. In prayer, we become transformed by divine grace, becoming more and more a clearer image of Christ, the Prince of Peace. In prayer, we are given the strength to forgive and to reconcile, to hope beyond hope, to persevere and to endure. In prayer, we are re-created into Christian peacemakers.
I would like to propose a concrete way to strengthen our resolution to bring the Prince of Peace to each day and to every person in 2004. Ask our Blessed Mother's help by praying three Hail Marys every morning and evening, with the request: “O Mary, make me, like you, one who brings Christ and His Peace to others.”
Like the shepherds in today's gospel account, we have “found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in the manger.” And looking to Mary, the God-bearer, the Mother of the Prince of Peace, we echo the words of a prayer which our Holy Father himself prayed several weeks ago on the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception.
“Queen of Peace, pray for us! Mother of mercy and hope, obtain for the men and women of the third millennium the precious gift of peace: peace in hearts and families, in communities and among peoples; peace above all for those nations where people fight and die every day. Obtain that every human being of every race and culture may encounter and accept Jesus, who came down to earth in the mystery of Christmas to give 'His peace' to us. O Mary, Queen of Peace, give us Christ, the world's true Peace!”
May each of you be filled with Christ's peace and be a peacemaker throughout this new year!
