From the January 2025 Parish Magazine
Dear friends,
Happy New Year or as the Japanese would say, akemashite (the New Year has dawned!) omedetou (Congratulations!) gozaimasu!
I’m offering you the Japanese version of Happy New Year because of their acknowledgement that the New Year has begun. We often seem reluctant, I think, to pause in the present moment, to notice all of it’s details, and to delight in it.
The Japanese folk are much better at this, from my experience. There are various customs that are observed which are deeply rooted in ancient traditions. For example, temples and shrines are the busiest places shortly after midnight has struck because it is normal for ones first act in the New Year is to pray for prosperity, good health and a good harvest for the coming year. In addition people ring the temple bell in the hope that the gods will hear peoples prayers. The first sunrise of the New Year is pertinent as well, symbolising renewal and aspiration, as people believe the gods appear to bless followers with good health, good fortune and prosperity.
Whilst I believe that God is always with us, there is something beautiful about the idea of offering the first moments of the New Year to God. Equally, within these first minutes, offering our hopes for the coming year and putting them back into the hands of God seems very apt.
So, as a new year dawns for us, what are you hopes for yourself, for those who you love, and for your work? I encourage you to offer all of this up to God. Also, in the spirit of a two way covenants with God (as Abraham made with God in Genesis), what are you going to pledge to God this coming year? I’m not really into the idea of New Years resolutions, not least because I rarely managed to keep them, but I do think we should embrace every opportunity to look at our relationship with God seek to draw closer to our Creator,
Redeemer and Sustainer.
Let’s think about that instead of New Years resolutions.
Every blessing,
Rev Morna
