Daily Archives: December 19, 2023

Reflect on the Year and Prepare for the New Year with Spiritual Help

How to Reflect on the Year and Prepare for the New Year with Spiritual Help

How to Reflect on the Year and Prepare for the New Year with Spiritual Help

The end of the year is a great time to look back on what we have experienced, learned, and achieved, as well as to look forward to what we hope to accomplish, improve, and enjoy in the new year. But how can we do this in a way that is spiritually meaningful and helpful? How can we use this opportunity to grow, learn, and transform ourselves and our lives? How can we make the new year a fresh start, a new beginning, a new chapter in our story?

In this article, I will share with you some suggestions on how to reflect on the year and prepare for the new year with spiritual help. These suggestions are based on my own experience and research, but you can adapt them to your own beliefs, values, and goals. My hope is that by following these suggestions, you will be able to make the most of this precious time and enter the new year with a sense of peace, clarity, and purpose.

1. Spend time in prayer and meditation:

One of the best ways to connect with our inner self and with God is to spend time in prayer and meditation. Prayer is a way of communicating with God, expressing our gratitude, asking for guidance, and seeking forgiveness. Meditation is a way of quieting our mind, listening to our intuition, and becoming more aware of our thoughts and feelings. Both practices can help us reflect on the past year and prepare for the new year with a sense of peace, clarity, and purpose.

To make the most of this time, I suggest that you set aside some time every day, preferably in the morning or evening, to pray and meditate. Find a quiet and comfortable place, where you can be alone and undisturbed. You can use a candle, a music, a mantra, a scripture, or anything else that helps you focus and relax. You can also use a journal, a notebook, or an app to record your thoughts, feelings, insights, and revelations.

As you pray and meditate, you can ask yourself some questions, such as:

What am I grateful for this year?

What have I learned this year?

What have I achieved this year?

What have I overcome this year?

What have I enjoyed this year?

What have I missed this year?

What have I regretted this year?

What have I forgiven this year?

What have I asked for forgiveness this year?

What have I let go of this year?

What have I embraced this year?

As you answer these questions, you can also thank God for all the blessings, opportunities, and challenges that you have received this year. You can also ask God for guidance, wisdom, and strength for the new year. You can also seek forgiveness for any mistakes, sins, or offenses that you have committed this year. You can also forgive yourself and others for any hurts, wrongs, or disappointments that you have experienced this year.

By spending time in prayer and meditation, you will be able to acknowledge and appreciate all that you have lived, learned, and loved this year. You will also be able to release and heal any pain, anger, or resentment that you have carried this year. You will also be able to align and attune yourself with God’s will, plan, and love for you.

2. Review your goals and vision:

Another way to reflect on the year and prepare for the new year is to review our goals and vision. Goals are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound actions that we want to take to improve ourselves or our situation. Vision is a broader, more inspiring picture of what we want our life to look like in the future. By reviewing our goals and vision, we can see what we have accomplished, what we need to work on, and what we want to change or add. We can also celebrate our successes, learn from our failures, and adjust our plans accordingly.

To make the most of this time, I suggest that you take some time to review your goals and vision for the past year, the present year, and the next year. You can use a planner, a calendar, a spreadsheet, or any other tool that helps you organize and track your progress. You can also use a vision board, a collage, a poster, or any other tool that helps you visualize and manifest your dreams.

As you review your goals and vision, you can ask yourself some questions, such as:

What goals did I set for myself this year?

What goals did I achieve this year?

What goals did I not achieve this year?

What goals do I still want to achieve this year?

What goals do I want to set for myself for the next year?

What is my vision for my life in the next year?

How does my vision align with God’s vision for me?

How can I make my vision a reality?

As you answer these questions, you can also congratulate yourself for all the goals that you have achieved this year. You can also analyze the reasons why you did not achieve some of your goals this year. You can also identify the obstacles, challenges, and opportunities that you faced or will face in achieving your goals. You can also revise, modify, or delete any goals that are no longer relevant, realistic, or desirable for you. You can also create, update, or refine your vision for your life in the next year.

By reviewing your goals and vision, you will be able to measure and evaluate your performance, growth, and improvement this year. You will also be able to plan and strategize your actions, decisions, and attitude for the next year. You will also be able to align and attune yourself with God’s purpose, direction, and blessing for you.

3. Choose a word or theme for the new year:

A simple but powerful way to prepare for the new year is to choose a word or theme that will guide our actions, decisions, and attitude throughout the year. A word or theme can be anything that resonates with us, such as a value, a quality, a virtue, a challenge, or a desire. For example, some possible words or themes are: joy, courage, faith, growth, love, service, gratitude, or balance. By choosing a word or theme, we can focus our energy and intention on what matters most to us and what we want to manifest in our life.

To make the most of this time, I suggest that you take some time to choose a word or theme for the new year. You can use a dictionary, a thesaurus, a book, a website, or any other source that helps you find and explore different words and themes. You can also use a journal, a notebook, or an app to write down and reflect on different words and themes that come to your mind.

As you choose a word or theme, you can ask yourself some questions, such as:

What word or theme captures the essence of what I want to experience, express, or achieve in the new year?

What word or theme inspires me, motivates me, or challenges me to be a better person in the new year?

What word or theme connects me, supports me, or empowers me to fulfill God’s will, plan, and love for me in the new year?

How can I apply, embody, or live out my word or theme in the new year?

As you answer these questions, you can also pray and meditate on your word or theme, asking God to confirm, clarify, and bless your choice. You can also share your word or theme with others, asking for their feedback, support, and accountability. You can also display your word or theme in a visible place, such as your bedroom, your office, your car, or your phone, as a reminder and a reinforcement of your commitment.

By choosing a word or theme, you will be able to simplify and streamline your focus, direction, and action for the new year. You will also be able to amplify and magnify your impact, influence, and contribution for the new year. You will also be able to align and attune yourself with God’s word, theme, and message for you.

4. Seek spiritual guidance and support:

Finally, a helpful way to prepare for the new year is to seek spiritual guidance and support from others who share our beliefs, values, and goals. This can be done by joining a religious or spiritual community, attending a service or ceremony, reading a book or article, listening to a podcast or music, or having a conversation with a friend, mentor, or counselor. By seeking spiritual guidance and support, we can gain insight, inspiration, and encouragement for our journey ahead.

To make the most of this time, I suggest that you take some time to seek spiritual guidance and support from others who can help you grow, learn, and transform in the new year. You can use a directory, a website, a social media, or any other source that helps you find and connect with different religious or spiritual communities, services, ceremonies, books, articles, podcasts, music, friends, mentors, or counselors. You can also use a journal, a notebook, or an app to record and reflect on the spiritual guidance and support that you receive.

As you seek spiritual guidance and support, you can ask yourself some questions, such as:

What spiritual guidance and support do I need in the new year?

What spiritual guidance and support can I offer in the new year?

What spiritual guidance and support can I receive in the new year?

How can I apply, embody, or live out the spiritual guidance and support that I receive in the new year?

As you answer these questions, you can also pray and meditate on the spiritual guidance

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St. Charles Borromeo

St. Charles Borromeo

Feast daySeptember 25
Patronof Cork, Diocese of Cork
Birth550
Death620

St. Charles Borromeo was born on October 2, 1538 at the castle of Arona on Lake Maggiore near Milan. His father was the Count of Arona and his mother a member of the House of Medici. He was the third of six children born to the couple.

At the age of 12, the young Count Charles Borromeo dedicated himself to a life of service to the Church. His uncle gave to him the family income from the Benedictine abbey of Saints Gratinian and Felinus. Even as a youth, his integrity was obvious. He was explicit in telling his father that he could only keep the money required for his education and to prepare him for service to the Church. All other funds belonged to the poor of the Church and were to be passed along to them.

The young count suffered from a speech impediment that made him appear slow to those who did not know him. Despite this challenge, he performed well and impressed his teachers. He attended the University of Pavia and learned Latin. He was praised because he was hardworking and thorough.

In 1554 his father passed away and although Charles was a teenager, responsibility for his household fell to him. Charles continued in his studies and earned a doctorate in canon and civil law.

His responsibility for his household resulted in financial difficulties, and Charles earned a reputation for being short of funds.

Life sped up for the young count after his uncle, Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Medici became Pope Pius IV on December 25, 1559. The new pope asked his nephew to come to Rome and appointed him as a cardinal-deacon. With the rank came the job of assisting and advising his uncle full-time. A month later, Pope Pius IV made his nephew a cardinal.

With the new rank came even more duties including the government of the Papal States, the supervision of the Knights of Malta, the Franciscans, and the Carmelites. He was only 23 years old.

The young Borromeo used his leadership role in the Vatican to promote learning and he established a literary academy. He wrote of some of the lessons and lectures in the book, Noctes Vaticanae.

Borromeo was appointed administrator of the Archdiocese of Milan in 1560. Since he would become the ecclesiastical administrator of Milan, he decided that the Lord was calling him to the priesthood.

In 1561, he founded a college at Pavia dedicated to St. Justina of Padua.

In 1562 his brother died and his family urged him to leave the service of the church to preserve the family name. However, Borromeo refused. He became more insistent upon becoming a good bishop and in compelling others to lead exemplary lives of clerical service.

Borromeo was ordained first to the order of deacon. Then, he was ordained to the holy priesthood on September 4, 1563. Then, he was ordained as a bishop on December 7, 1563. He became Archbishop of Milan in May 12, 1564.

In 1566, Archbishop Borromeo’s benefactor and uncle, Pope Pius IV died. Borromeo had already developed a reputation as a young, idealistic reformer in Rome, and he continued that mission in Milan. Milan was the largest diocese in the Catholic Church at the time and corruption was rampant.

The driving out of corruption was a critical matter during Borromeo’s time. The Protestant Reformation was spreading throughout northern Europe and constantly threatened to move south. The greatest defense against Protestant doctrinal errors and claims against the hierarchy of the Catholic Church was reform and the restoration of integrity to the Catholic Church. Archbishop Borromeo saw this clearly and he made this his mission.

His strategy was to provide education to many clergy he saw as ignorant. He founded schools and seminaries and colleges for clergy.

He also ended the selling of indulgences, a form of simony (Catholic Catechism #2120, and ordered monasteries to reform themselves. He made a lot of visits to various locations to inspect for himself. He ordered the simplification of church interiors, which was a major point of contention between some Catholics and Protestants. The complex and busy interiors were claimed to be a distraction from the worship of God. This danger was acknowledged during the Council of Trent which Archbishop Borromeo enforced. Even tombs belonging to his own relatives were cleared of inappropriate ornaments and embellishments.

His work of cleaning up the Church also made him enemies. On one occasion a member of a small, decrepit order known as the “Humiliati” attempted to assassinate him with a pistol, but missed.

Many of his subordinates and secular officials complained about the Archbishop throughout his career. However, the existence of these enemies only emboldened Borromeo and served as confirmation that his efforts to eradicate corruption were working.

In 1576 a famine struck Milan followed by the plague, and many of the wealthy and powerful fled the city. Archbishop Borromeo remained. He used his own fortune to feed the starving people. When that money was spent, he took loans and went deep into debt. He may have fed 70,000 people per day. Eventually, the Archbishop convinced the local governor to return to his post and care for the people.

In 1583, Archbishop Borromeo traveled to Switzerland and began work suppressing heresy there. Protestant heresies, along with witchcraft and sorcery had been widely reported. He founded the Collegium Helveticum to serve and educate Swiss Catholics.

Eventually, the Archbishop’s life of work and toil began to take its toll. In 1584, he became ill with a fever. He returned to Milan where his conditioned worsened. When it became obvious he would die, he was given his last Sacraments. He died on November 3, at the age of 46.

He was beatified on May 12, 1602 by Pope Paul V. He was subsequently canonized by Pope Paul V on November 1, 1610.

St. Charles Borromeo’s feast day is celebrated on November 4. He is the patron of bishops, catechists, Lombardy, Italy, Monterey, California, cardinals, seminarians, spiritual leaders, and Sao Carlos in Brazil.

St. Charles Borromeo has a beautiful shrine in the Milan Cathedral and is often depicted in art wearing his robes, barefoot, carrying the cross with a rope around his neck and his arm raised in blessing.

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Daily mass readings for Jan 2, 2024

Daily mass readings: Memorial of Saints Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops and Doctors of the Church

Reading 1 : 1 JN 2:22-28

Beloved:
Who is the liar?
Whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ.
Whoever denies the Father and the Son, this is the antichrist.
Anyone who denies the Son does not have the Father,
but whoever confesses the Son has the Father as well.
Let what you heard from the beginning remain in you.
If what you heard from the beginning remains in you,
then you will remain in the Son and in the Father.
And this is the promise that he made us: eternal life.
I write you these things about those who would deceive you.
As for you,
the anointing that you received from him remains in you,
so that you do not need anyone to teach you.
But his anointing teaches you about everything and is true and not false;
just as it taught you, remain in him.

And now, children, remain in him,
so that when he appears we may have confidence
and not be put to shame by him at his coming.

Responsorial Psalm  : 98:1, 2-3AB, 3CD-4

R. (3cd)  All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God.
Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done wondrous deeds;
His right hand has won victory for him,
his holy arm.
R. All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God.
The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
R. All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation by our God.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
break into song; sing praise.
R. All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God.

Alleluia HEB 1:1-2

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
In times, past, God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets:
in these last days, he has spoken to us through his Son.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel : Jn 1:19-28

This is the testimony of John. 
When the Jews from Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to him
to ask him, “Who are you?”
he admitted and did not deny it, but admitted,
“I am not the Christ.” 
So they asked him,
“What are you then? Are you Elijah?” 
And he said, “I am not.” 
“Are you the Prophet?”
He answered, “No.” 
So they said to him,
“Who are you, so we can give an answer to those who sent us? 
What do you have to say for yourself?”
He said:
“I am the voice of one crying out in the desert,
‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’
as Isaiah the prophet said.” 
Some Pharisees were also sent. 
They asked him,
“Why then do you baptize
if you are not the Christ or Elijah or the Prophet?” 
John answered them,
“I baptize with water;
but there is one among you whom you do not recognize,
the one who is coming after me,
whose sandal strap I am not worthy to untie.” 
This happened in Bethany across the Jordan,
where John was baptizing.

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