'What are your spiritual goals for 2016?'
CHARLOTTE — For Catholics, New Year's Day is more than just a day to make resolutions. It's a day to honor the Blessed Virgin Mary as the Mother of God and consider ways to imitate her virtues to grow in holiness and in deeper communion with her Son, Jesus Christ.
"Have you decided on your goals for the year 2016?" asked Bishop Peter Jugis during his homily Jan. 1 at St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte. "We've got to have goals. We've got to have something to work toward to keep us moving forward – otherwise, we just stay in one place."
For those who may be seeking spiritual goals during 2016 Bishop Jugis offered these five suggestions: "Read the Bible more often or do spiritual reading. Pray the rosary more often, or other prayers or novenas. Make a Holy Hour at the Adoration Chapel. Make more frequent confessions to grow in holiness. Make a better preparation for Mass by reading the scripture readings and thinking about them before coming to Mass."
It's important to remember that the ultimate goal of our lives is heaven, he stressed. It's essential we make progress every day towards attaining that goal, because we never know when God may call us from this life.
Bishop Jugis recalled that St. John Paul II said at the beginning of the new millennium, the Jubilee of 2000, the first priority of every person should be holiness.
"To achieve that goal of holiness, he said that all of our parishes should be schools of prayer where we are constantly growing in holiness," Bishop Jugis noted. "So, taking a cue from our beloved St. John Paul II, how about holiness as a spiritual goal for 2016?"
Holiness is a gift we receive at our baptism when sanctifying grace is infused into our souls and we become followers of Christ, he explained. At that moment we are joined to Christ and a life of holiness – very different from other paths available in this world.
As we grow and practice our faith, we build upon that foundation of holiness, he continued – every time we go to confession, every time we receive the Eucharist, every time we pray.
"The Blessed Mother, whom we honor today on her feast day, also received holiness as a gift, a most extraordinary gift that she above all other humans received – the gift of perfect holiness," he said. "From the very first moment, she is the Immaculate Conception, entering life without sin."
Mary is the perfect example of holiness and the best teacher for our "schools of prayer," he said.
He pointed out that the Gospel reading describes how the shepherds heard the angel's message and sought out the infant Jesus, adding, "And Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart."
"What is she reflecting upon?" he asked. "Really, she is reflecting on the Mystery of Christ that she has been privileged to carry and bring into the world. If you think about it, that is what we are privileged to do every time we pray the rosary. We are reflecting on the Mystery of Christ, the same Christ whom we have been privileged to welcome into our own soul, into our own lives at our baptism, and every day that we receive the Holy Eucharist – Jesus really, substantially, coming to live in our souls, into our lives."
"May the Blessed Mother pray for us as we pursue the worthy goal of holiness this New Year 2016," he prayed. "Life is so much better with Jesus as an active presence in our daily life."
— SueAnn Howell, Senior reporter