Special blessings for 2025 the JUBILEE YEAR and OUR WORLD, A FAMILY OF FAMILIES. For more details about the themes for the year and for January go to https://marfam.org.za/2025-family-year-planner/

January 1. Mary, Mother of God.  World Day of Prayer for Peace. Mary, Mother of God is also Mother of Hope. From  the moment when Simeon, in blessing her, said a cross would pierce her heart she learned to expect the pain as well as the joy of her special mission.  Her hope was not naïve optimism but faith, trust and acceptance in doing God’s will. Pope Francis has chosen the theme ‘forgive us our trespasses; grant us your peace” for his 2025, message for the World Day of Prayer for Peace. He made three particular proposals for the international community and all of society that can be taken up as individuals and  families in our own particular contexts. The three proposals are: reducing or cancellation of international debts,  respect for all human life from conception till death and a call for universal peace.    

“Each of us must feel in some way responsible for the devastation to which the earth, our common home, has been subjected, beginning with those actions that, albeit only indirectly, fuel the conflicts that presently plague our human family. Systemic challenges, distinct yet interconnected, are thus created and together cause havoc in our world.  I think of all manner of disparities, the inhuman treatment meted out to migrants, environmental decay, the confusion willfully created by disinformation, the refusal to engage in any form of dialogue and the immense resources spent on the industry of war. All these, taken together, represent a threat to the existence of humanity as a whole. At the beginning of this year, then, we desire to heed the plea of suffering humankind in order to feel called, together and as individuals, to break the bonds of injustice and to proclaim God’s justice. Sporadic acts of philanthropy are not enough. Cultural and structural changes are necessary, so that enduring change may come about.   World Day of Peace message 4 and 5.

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Reflect, share. Scripture Blessing Prayer: “May the Lord bless you and keep you.  May the Lord let his face shine on you and be gracious to you.  May the Lord uncover his face to you and bring you peace. Book of Numbers 6:23-27.

Pope Francis:  At the start of this Year of Grace we wish to hear the “desperate plea for help” [1] that, like the cry of the blood of Abel (cf. Gen 4:10), rises up from so many parts of our world – a plea that God never fails to hear. We for our part feel bound to cry out and denounce the many situations in which the earth is exploited and our neighbours oppressed. [2] These injustices can be called “structures of sin” and arise not only from injustice on the part of some but are part of a network of complicity.  Each of us must feel in some way responsible for the devastation to which the earth, our common home, has been subjected.  Without gratitude, we are unable to recognize God’s gifts. Yet in his infinite mercy the Lord does not abandon sinful humanity, but instead reaffirms his gift of life by the saving forgiveness offered to all through Jesus Christ. That is why, in teaching us the “Our Father”, Jesus told us to pray: “Forgive us our trespasses” ( Mt 6:12). Peace does not only come with the end of wars but with the dawn of a new world, a world in which we realize that we are different, closer and more fraternal than we ever thought possible. Prayer: “Lord, grant us your peace! This is my prayer to God as I now offer my cordial good wishes for the New Year to the Heads of State and Government, to the leaders of International Organizations, to the leaders of the various religions and to every person of good will.   “Forgive us our trespasses, Lord, as we forgive those who trespass against us. In this cycle of forgiveness, grant us your peace, the peace that you alone can give to those who let themselves be disarmed in heart, to those who choose in hope to forgive the debts of their brothers and sisters, to those who are unafraid to confess their debt to you, and to those who do not close their ears to the cry of the poor.  From the Vatican, 8 December 2024    Prayer and action: As a New Year’s resolution reflect seriously on your personal response and what action is possible.