By Fr Jason Smith

Happy New Year!

Well, more specifically, happy liturgical new year. Break open the champagne, wake the children, and call the neighbors, Advent starts tomorrow!

Perhaps one could find it strange that the Church’s new year begins tomorrow rather than in about a month from now. But, if we stop to think about it, it does make a lot of sense.

Our liturgical year follows the life of Christ, from Jesus’ awaited appearance, to his time in Mary’s womb, to his birth, flight into Egypt, presentation in the temple, his forty days of fasting and prayer, his baptism, his public ministry, his miracles, to his entrance into Jerusalem on a donkey, to the Last Supper, his agony and trial, crucifixion and death, to his resurrection, ascension, sending of the Holy Spirit, and his return in glory which we have just spent the last week reading and meditation on, and his crowning as King.

This is what the liturgical year follows, and this Sunday, the first of Advent, we are about to begin again. Yesterday, St Andrew’s feast, we read how St Peter and St Andrew left their nets to follow the Lord. Each new liturgical year we set out to retrace his footsteps, striving to become more and more like the one we are following.

So, lets start our new liturgical year with the resolution to follow the Lord closely.