It is that time of year when people look back on the past year with fondness or sadness for the way things worked out for them. They cast an optimistic eye toward the next year and hope the good things continue while resolving to correct the negative things of the past year.
There is nothing particularly religious or spiritual about New Year’s Eve or Day celebrations. In a purely secular or basic science sense, what people dating back to the Babylonians have celebrated is the successful completion of another cycle of Earth in space, which, of course, they had absolutely nothing to do with or about.
Somehow long ago, Egyptian scientists and astronomers figured out how to measure a year based on lunar observations. Civilizations then ascribed whatever meaning or motive they chose to such successful orbital completions.
The Babylonians celebrated one of the first New Year festivals (Akitu) in late March 2000 B.C., to honor Marduk, their king who had won a momentous battle. He, of course, told them this battle — which coincided with the successful completion of their celestial journey — confirmed his continued divine rule over them.
It wasn’t until the Romans adopted the Julian calendar under Julius Caesar in 46 B.C. that we even had a Jan. 1 on which to celebrate New Year’s Day, since there was no January before then.
Oddly enough, the whole concept of the Earth not being the center of the solar system is a relatively new phenomenon in the history of mankind. It was not overturned until roughly 500 years ago when Nicolaus Copernicus published “On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres.” Talk about one person turning the world upside down. His book overturned centuries of scientific and religious belief by setting the sun as the center of our solar system and obligating the Earth to revolve around it once every year.
The question then arises about why we celebrate the new year on one particular day. Why not another day of the year?
What is it about human beings that almost commands us to have a beginning and an end to the way we organize and look at our lives? There is something almost magical about the way we look at New Year’s Day today in America. It is like we believe the universe has given us permission to put a bad year behind us and look forward with optimism to a new one.
But is this even possible or healthy for the way we live on a daily basis?
If something is going wrong in our lives, does it make sense to wait 8-10 months until the end of the year to do something about it? Of course, the planetary revolution had everything to do with what went wrong — waiting for the next revolution around the sun will fix everything.
One of the most popular resolutions people make on New Year’s Day is, “I am going to lose weight and get into shape this year!”
If losing weight and getting into shape are good ideas to start doing at the end of the year, why are they not good ideas to start on March 15 or any other day?
New Year’s resolutions are notoriously hard to keep. Gyms and YMCAs are packed with new faces and memberships during the month of January.
Looking back on the past year almost always involves some degree of anger, which drains the soul. The energy that goes into remembering and recreating in your mind the injustices of the past detracts from the joys of living in the present and planning ahead with excitement for the future.
The one resolution everyone can make on any day of the year is to enjoy and be thankful for the love, good things and people around you. Such a revelation can sustain anyone for the next 365 days, whether it begins Jan. 1 or not.
The Bible is replete with advice and admonitions to not be anxious about the future or worry too much about the past. The word “anxiety” comes from Latin and Greek words that connote the sense of loss of control, choking, and the feeling of being literally torn apart in mind, body and soul.
Imagine a resolution for the new year that puts all of those negative feelings away forever. One of the best comes from the First Letter of Peter to persecuted Christians in Asia Minor when he says, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”
