THE RENEWAL of faith should be the No. 1 New Year’s resolution of the faithful this 2024, former UST secretary general Fr. Florentino Bolo, O.P. said during Mass for the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God on Monday, Jan. 1, at the Santisimo Rosario Parish Church.
Some resolutions don’t even last a week, Bolo said, but asking for a fresh start with God would last the entire year.
“Kadalasan, mga New Year’s resolution, hindi na lumalampas ng isang araw; medyo mahirap sundin lalo na kung we will rely on our own strength and our own capacities kasi alam natin na mahina tayo,” he said in his homily. “Of course, as Catholics, we want this to be the renewal of our faith in God.”
“Tayo ay sama-samang nananalangin sa Panginoon sa pagsisimula ng Bagong Taon that [He] may send us His blessings in His mercy,” he added.
Catholics are already privileged to receive the blessing of spiritual motherhood from the Blessed Virgin Mary, Bolo said.
“We are all fortunate because we will never be orphans with Mary as our Mother in Heaven,” he said.
“Higit sa lahat, hindi lang bilang Ina, hindi lang bilang intercessor, Mary is given to all of us as a model of discipleship, as a model of following Christ, as a model of what it truly means to be a Christian,” he added.
Jan. 1 commemorates Mary’s pivotal role in the incarnation of Jesus Christ, the second person in the Holy Trinity. It also marks the octave, or the eighth day, of the Christmas season.
