Thoughts on the New Year

On the list of our favorite holy days and holidays, maybe it's time to recognize this week that we've just enjoyed. It doesn't really have a catchy name. It's just "the week between Christmas and New Year." So maybe it needs a name. Like Family Week. Or Feet-Up Week. Or Quiet Week. I'm sure you've got some better ideas for naming it.

The nature of some public and private employment allows workers to remain home this week. For workers who have this blessing, it really has been all those possible names. Family time. Feet up. Quiet. A gift to be much appreciated!

For those with other duties -- those who must attend to the public and private business that the rest of us expect to resume promptly on December 26 -- these are days with a mind half at work, and half at home where children and grandchildren await our return. If you've worked a normal schedule this week, I hope you still were able to carve out some extra family time.

And yet one wonders ... If France and other nations can manage a month off in the summer, could we not survive with nearly everything closed during [Let's Name It] Week? A frantic society ever rushing to -- where, exactly? -- might profit from a full break by nearly everyone. If any of you who are reading this are planning a presidential run, perhaps you could include it in your platform.

In other news, Omicon is (depending on which source one reads) "tearing" or "ripping" through the populace. Delta was said to be more contagious than the original strain by a multiple, and Omicron is now said likewise to be, by a multiple, more contagious than Delta. Hmmm. A multiple of a multiple -- that's pretty contagious! It currently appears, however, that Omicron is less dangerous, though the greater number of cases means that hospitals are filling even with a lower percentage of infected persons being hospitalized. Let us continue our prayers, both for those directly affected, and for protection against the temptation to respond uncharitably to those whose preferred level of caution is greater or less than our own.

In the continuing journey back toward normal, there will come a time when the Exchange of Peace will again be in the Mass. When we get there (after Omicron settles down), know that each of us will be free to participate at whatever level we prefer. Perhaps a hug for a family member, and a smiling word for a person in the next pew. Some will feel comfortable shaking hands, some will prefer a simple nod of acknowledgment. When we get there, please remember once again that Christian charity must guide our reaction to those who see Covid differently than we do.

The only other element awaiting return at Mass is the offering of Precious Blood to the congregation. Of course, even before Covid, that was a practice cherished by some, avoided by some. It will always be that way. I'm not sure when we'll again offer Precious Blood to those in the Communion line, but -- to repeat it yet again -- the rule of charity will prevail. Those who might be sick (in any fashion) would surely decline the Cup.

And now comes a new year. Anno Domini Two Thousand Twenty-Two. (Really?!  We've come this far through a new century?) If we look at the economy, international relations, politics, and related sectors, then no one knows what awaits us. But if we look at what matters, then we know a great deal more. We know that God is in His Heaven, that we share the love of family, that blue sky and green grass and lakes and mountains await us this summer, and that we are called to live in Hope, never in fear.

May each of your families be filled with the Love and Peace of Christ throughout this New Year!

frmike