We say, “Merry Christmas and Happy New Year” in one breath, and commonly refer to this time of year as the “Holiday Season”, as if it were all one singular event. There is an interesting irony in lumping the two celebrations together, for although both events celebrate new beginnings, there is a difference as New Year’s places the burden on us to begin anew, and the reason we make New Year’s resolutions. Christmas, on the other hand, places that burden on – of all things – a Babe in a manger whose new beginnings fulfill an ancient promise of restoring mankind’s relationship with God. And while New Year’s resolutions are sure to fail, the Babe in the manger is a sure thing – He who proclaims, “Behold, I make all things new.”
