A New Year's Resolution

Happy New Year. Have you ever wondered why the year begins on the first of January? It was Julius Caesar’s fault. He created the Julian calendar about 60 years before the birth of Christ. Before Caesar, Romans celebrated the new year in March at the spring equinox. It was the celebration of new beginnings when light became triumphant over darkness. Caesar changed it to honor the Roman god Janus. Janus was the god with two faces one looking forward and one looking back. He could check where he was going at the same time he saw where he had been. Caesar would have had the year begin on the winter solstice, but the god Saturnalia already held that position. Saturnalia was one of the gods of agriculture, and her feast beginning on Dec 17th. Lasting more than a week, it was one of the most lavish and leud of the many Roman parties. This feast was one of the high points of Roman society. It was this feast of Saturnalia that Constantine usurped as the birthday of Jesus. We actually don’t know when Jesus was born. Birthdays were only recorded for Emperors. Scholars believe Jesus was actually born in the spring. But back to the new year.

Romans didn’t make too much of the new year. A few references to new beginnings, but that is about it. The Jews on the other hand celebrated the day of atonement (Yom Kippur) in October as a day when all sins are forgiven and everything begins anew. On every 50th year of atonement the Jews celebrate a year of Jubilee. During that observance everything begins as new. Land returns to the original tribe and owner, all debts are erased, and slaves are freed. Truly a rebirth of society amid a great celebration. Sounds like the roman feast only less often.

We were in Japan for the Chinese New Year in 2001. The exact day varies a little but is generally in mid to late January. This year it is on Jan 26 and ushers in the yar of the rabbit. I was born in the year of the horse. The animals assigned follow the signs of the zodiac and repeats every 12 years. Asians place a lot of emphasis on the animal under which they are born. It supposedly determines your character, your potential, and your compatibility for a spouse. We were actually in Kyoto around the national bell when it rang in the new year. My wife and I plus about 100,000 Japanese. The biggest and tightest crowd I have ever been in.

The Chinese New Year is the main celebration of Japanese and all Asian culture. They have traditional foods, and give gifts reminiscent of our Christmas. Their New Year also has overtones of renewal and rebirth.

I have yet to learn of a culture that does not have a time of renewal. Few are as drastic as the Jewish Year of Jubilee, but all cultures have one. For some it is the spring equinox, for others it is the fall harvest. The European Octoberfest is a time of renewal as well as a time of celebration. Revelers celebrate the past harvest and look forward to a new cycle of seasons. Romans, Jews and Asians all have, or had, a celebration where they celebrate the past year and look forward to a new one.

One of the things that struck me as I learned to move to the rhythm of Eastern Washington was how close we are tied to the seasons. We are part of a great circle of life. You can see the cycle in the colors as you drive to and from Spokane. The bright green of spring gives way to the softer hues of summer then the gold of fall. Winter is the time when there is nothing to do except to attend basketball games and to watch the wheat grow. Then when light begins to dominate darkness, we celebrate. We celebrate being a year older. We celebrate conquering all the challenges we faced in the past year. We celebrate the bounty God has granted us. Then like the Roman god Janus, we look forward to an exciting new beginning. A new birth of optimism and hope.

I want you all to do some thing with me. We celebrated the old year last night and now we are embarked on a brand new journey through 2023. It is a common tradition to make resolutions at the beginning of the new year. As we look forward, we promise ourselves to lose weight, to exercise more, to stop smoking or something similar. Few of us take these resolutions seriously, but we still go through the motions of making them. It could be that we recognize these self-promised are not binding, and only what we wish we could do not what we actually can do. So given that I want all of us to make a resolution together. I am thinking that public resolutions have a greater chance of being kept. You will all have each other to make sure you keep your self-made group promise. Are you ready? “I promise that sometime during the next year, I will do something that will make the world a better place.” Don’t make it bigger or more difficult than it is meant to be. Something that will make the world a better place. It doesn’t have to be a big deal, and it doesn’t have to be right now. Just something. Keep your promise in the back of your mind, and when the time is right, you will know.