1 John 2:18-21 / John 1:1-18
Today being the last day of the year, it is also a unique time when we look in two differing directions.
Yes, we look forward to the new year ahead, with its "joys and hopes," as well as its "griefs and anxieties" (Pastoral Constitution On The Church In The Modern World, Gaudium Et Spes
Promulgated by His Holiness, Pope Paul Vi on December 7, 1965
).
Yes, the future is uncertain and unpredictable, but that is what the mystery of life is all about.
On the other hand, we also look back on the 365 days that had passed, for some it was quickly, for others it was slowly, but in whatever case, it has gone down to memory and for our recollection and reflection.
For better or for worse, be it good times or bad, the gospel takes our recollection and reflection to "In the beginning was the Word..."
And that is to tell us that the Word of God was made flesh everyday of 2016, from the 1st January to today. The question is: Did we recognize Him and accepted Him into our lives?
Or is it like what the gospel said: He came to His own domain, and His own people did not accept Him.
The 1st reading begins with an opposite time when it says that "these are the last days", and it is described as a rather turbulent time, with the appearance of several antichrists, arising from within the church.
But as it says of these antichrists, they had never really belonged and now they had become enemies of the Church.
So as we come to the last day of the year, let us acknowledge the presence of Jesus, the Word made flesh, and let us welcome Him into our lives. Let us pledge to belong to Him so that He will be present to us all the days of the new year ahead.