Second Sunday after Christmas Day AD 2025

A quarter of the 21st century has passed. It is time to get used to a new number again: this time, 2026. However, more important than the number is what the year will be like. And most important of all, that this year – no matter what happens during it – be acceptable to the Lord.

From the book of the prophet Isaiah, we learn that the acceptable year of the Lord is one in which good tidings are proclaimed to the meek, the captives are set free, the brokenhearted are healed, and the mourners are comforted. The acceptable year of the Lord is one in which those who belong to God can be compared to trees bearing the fruit of righteousness.

This is our great and noble calling as God’s children: to give ourselves, all our time, all our strength, talents, and abilities to God and ask Him for grace so that all of it will bring Him glory and praise. Just as Saint Joseph devoted himself entirely to the service of the Son of God and His Mother.

As a carpenter, Joseph must have been a rational man who knew exactly what to do in each situation and what the consequences of his actions would be. Yes, he received his revelations in a dream, but he was not a sleepwalker, he was an alert, practical man who did what was necessary. He did what was acceptable to God – because he himself was always ready to accept what God wanted to give him. If we want this new year to be an acceptable year to God, let us do the same.