A BLESSING TO ALL FOR THE NEW YEAR

At the beginning of the New Year, let us call upon the Lord, that he may bless us.

In the book of Numbers 6:22-27, Moses is ordered to tell Aaron, the priest, to bless the people, using the following formula:

“May the Lord (Yahweh) bless you and keep you.

May the Lord (Yahweh) let his face shine on you and be gracious to you.

May the Lord (Yahweh) uncover his face to you and bring you peace.”

That is the blessing that I call upon you all. May the Lord be gracious to us; may the light of his face illumine us, so that we walk no more in darkness; and may he grant us peace.

As we enter the New Year, we cannot allow the doubts, the uncertainties, the shortcomings and the sufferings prevalent in the past year cover us in a dark cloud of despair, which does not allow us to see any way out any more. The optimism of the previous years has been shattered to pieces. The conviction that we become always bigger and get always more has been challenged by the downturn of the rich economies, which in the end were found to be bankrupted. People got used to consume and to enjoy life and they think it to be their right, even when they keep up the consumption with borrowed money that they cannot pay.

As we start the New Year, let us be realistic. We must stop living beyond our means, and must learn to save instead of spending. We need to work for a society that is fairer to all and which all can find a life worth of living.

May God bless you all.