A Fresh Start
January opens the year with three luminous feasts that reveal the heart of our faith: Mary, Mother of God; the Most Holy Name of Jesus; and the Baptism of the Lord. Together, they form a single arc of revelation—God enters our humanity, is named among us, and then steps into the waters that will redeem the world.
On January 1, the Church proclaims Mary Theotokos, the God-bearer. In her, we see the first act of discipleship: receiving Christ and giving Him to the world. Mary teaches us that the new year is not primarily about resolutions, but about reception—welcoming God’s grace and allowing it to take flesh in our lives. As Mother of God and Mother of the Church, she stands at the threshold of the year, inviting us to begin again under her maternal care, trusting that she who carried the Word made flesh will help us carry His presence into every corner of our lives.
Only days later, the Church honors the Holy Name of Jesus, the name first spoken over Mary’s Child with tenderness and awe. “Jesus”—Yeshua—means “God saves.” The name itself is a proclamation of His mission and identity. In a world saturated with competing voices and false promises, the Holy Name becomes our anchor and our prayer. To whisper His name is to invoke mercy, to confess our hope, and to place ourselves again under the saving power of the One who came not to condemn, but to heal. The Holy Name reminds us that salvation is not an abstraction; it is a person who knows us, walks with us, and calls us His own.
Finally, as the Christmas season draws toward its close, we behold Christ at the Jordan in the Baptism of the Lord. He who is sinless steps into the waters not to be cleansed, but to sanctify. He descends into the depths of human brokenness so that we might be raised with Him to new life. The heavens are opened, the Father’s voice declares Him the beloved Son, and the Spirit descends—here begins the public mission that His holy name foretold. For us, this feast becomes a renewal of our own baptismal identity: beloved, chosen, and sent. In these waters, we discover who we are and whose we are.
In Mary, we meet the humility of God who chooses a human mother.
In the Holy Name, we discover the mission of God who saves.
In the Baptism of the Lord, we encounter the compassion of God who stands with sinners and leads them home.
Together, these January feasts remind us that Catholic life begins and continues in relationship—with Mary who guides, with Jesus who saves, and with the Trinity who claims us as beloved. As the year unfolds, may we live under Mary’s mantle, trust in the Holy Name of Jesus, and walk each day in the dignity of our baptism. May these mysteries shape our hearts, steady our steps, and open us to the grace that God always desires to pour out anew.