Welcome to 2022!!! Likely you are exhausted from staying up late to celebrate a new year with your friends and family. This day always brings to mind resolutions, diet programs, calendars, time, and beginnings. Though the secular world sees this as a day for starting anew, the Church sees it as the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God. I think all of these themes tie together in a beautiful way through the Second Reading, where we first hear that Jesus became man at the fullness of time.
Have you ever wondered why calendars count time according to roughly the year that Jesus was born? It’s as if even the secular world can’t help but commemorate the importance of that historical event so many years ago. When we read further in Galatians we hear that Jesus is born of a woman. So he comes in the fullness of time and he is born of a woman. There are probably many different ways to interpret that, but the way I see it, the clock of human salvation started ticking the second that Eve took a bite of the apple. The first woman doomed human nature to a life without grace while the “second Eve” said yes to God’s plan for salvation.
All those years in between we wondered and waited at the plan that God had promised throughout the centuries. Time ticked on and many new years came and went, but God’s salvation clock brought us to the simple yes of a woman and the birth of the Savior. He always had the plan, but he waited for the precise moment when, instead of rejecting him, a woman would cooperate with him. Notice that grace, though it is freely given, requires cooperation for it to bear fruit. If we reject grace, God is not going to force us to take it. In the beginning Eve made the choice to fall and in the fullness of time Mary made the choice to say yes to God’s plan for her life.
So I guess the question for today and for the rest of 2022 should be, how are you allowing the grace of God to work in your life? You might have a new diet or exercise plan you are starting or a list of rules you are going to follow this year for your mental health, but what are you going to do in this new year to more fully imitate Mary who gave her yes and accepted the grace that God had to offer? Do you believe, as St. Paul did, that when God became man we became adopted sons and daughters of God? We are not slaves, but sons, and not just sons, but heirs. What are you going to do in this new year to cry out, “Abba, Father!” From all of us here at Diocesan, God bless and Happy New Year!
Tommy Shultz is a Business Development Representative for Diocesan. In this role he is committed to bringing the best software to dioceses and parishes while helping them evangelize on the digital continent. Tommy has worked in various diocese and parish roles since his graduation from Franciscan University with a Theology degree. He hopes to use his skills in evangelization, marketing, and communications, to serve the Church and bring the Good News to all. His favorite quote comes from St. John Paul II, who said, “A person is an entity of a sort to which the only proper and adequate way to relate is love.”
Feature Image Credit: Thomas Bormans, https://unsplash.com/photos/JsTmUnHdVYQ
Kathryn James Hermes, FSP, is the author of the newly released title
Susan Ciancio has a BA in psychology and a BA in sociology from the University of Notre Dame, with an MA in liberal studies from Indiana University. For the past 17 years, she has worked as a professional editor and writer, editing both fiction and nonfiction books, magazine articles, blogs, educational lessons, professional materials and website content. Eleven of those years have been in the pro-life sector. Currently Susan freelances and writes weekly for HLI, edits for American Life League, and is the editor of Celebrate Life Magazine. She also serves as executive editor for the Culture of Life Studies Program-an educational nonprofit program for K-12 students.
Dakota currently lives in Denver, CO and teaches English Language Development and Spanish to high schoolers. She is married to the love of her life, Ralph. In her spare time, she reads, goes to breweries, and watches baseball. Dakota’s favorite saints are St. John Paul II (how could it not be?) and St. José Luis Sánchez del Río. She is passionate about her faith and considers herself blessed at any opportunity to share that faith with others. Check out more of her writing at 
Deacon Dan Schneider is a retired general manager of industrial distributors. He and his wife Vicki have been married for over 50 years. They are the parents of eight children and thirty grandchildren. He has a degree in Family Life Education from Spring Arbor University. He was ordained a Permanent Deacon in 2002. He has a passion for working with engaged and married couples and his main ministry has been preparing couples for marriage.
Merridith Frediani loves words and is delighted by good sentences. She also loves Lake Michigan, dahlias, the first sip of hot coffee in the morning, millennials, and playing Sheepshead with her husband and three kids. She writes for Catholic Mom, Diocesan.com, and her local Catholic Herald. Her first book Draw Close to Jesus: A Woman’s Guide to Adoration is available at Our Sunday Visitor and Amazon. You can learn more at 
Elizabeth Tomlin is the author of Joyful Momentum: Building and Sustaining Vibrant Women’s Groups and contributing author to the Ave Prayer Book for Catholic Mothers. She is General Counsel for the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA. Elizabeth is an Army wife and mother of three and currently lives in the DC area. She blogs at 
Kate Taliaferro is an Air Force wife and mother. She is blessed to be able to homeschool, bake bread and fold endless piles of laundry. When not planning a school day, writing a blog post or cooking pasta, Kate can be found curled up with a book or working with some kind of fiber craft. Kate blogs at 
Kathryn Mulderink, MA, is married to Robert, Station Manager for Holy Family Radio. Together they have seven children (including Father Rob), and four grandchildren. She is President of the local community of Secular Discalced Carmelites and has published five books and many articles. Over the last 30 years, she has worked as a teacher, headmistress, catechist, Pastoral Associate, and DRE, and as a writer and voice talent for Catholic Radio. Currently, she serves the Church by writing and speaking, and by collaborating with various parishes and to lead others to encounter Christ and engage their faith. Her website is 
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