New Year's resolutions are personal promises to improve oneself at the start of the year, often focusing on health, finances, skills or relationships. As the faithful head further into 2026, diocesan priests shared that people’s relationships with God should also be part of their new year resolutions.
Father Roque Meraz, who serves at St. Paul in Valparaiso, said the first habit of the New Year should be Mass. He pointed out that every new year typically begins the same way, with people thinking about what they want to change. They talk about eating better, being more organized, exercising more, finally doing the things they keep putting off. He said people often say to themselves, “This year will be different.”
“But here is something I have learned over the years,” Father Meraz said, “most of our resolutions do not fail because we do not care. They fail because we try to do everything on our own. So let me offer a simple place to begin. As this new year starts, before the gym membership, before the new planner, before the long list of goals, make one quiet but important decision: make Sunday Mass a priority again.”
The associate pastor challenges the faithful to attend Mass every Sunday this year, not only when it is convenient, not when nothing else is going on, but as a real commitment.
“Try it for a year… and thank me later,” he said. “Sunday Mass is not just something the Church asks of us. It is something we actually need.”
Father Meraz added that when Sunday slowly disappears from life, other things follow. Prayer becomes rushed and faith moves to the background. God is still there, of course, but he no longer sets the rhythm of our week. However, when Sunday is protected, something changes. The week feels different, life has more balance, even when things are busy or hard, there is an anchor.
“Mass becomes the place where we come as we are, tired, distracted, imperfect, and let God do the work we cannot do on our own,” he said. “Mass is where we are fed when we are weak, corrected when we drift, and reminded who we are and whose we are. It is where God slowly forms our hearts, not through dramatic moments, but through consistency.”
Father Meraz acknowledged some Sundays, going to Mass will be easy. Other Sundays, it will take effort. However, he shared that faith is not built on motivation; it is built on showing up.
“As we begin this new year, I invite you to start there,” he said. “Let Sunday belong to God again. Build the rest of your plans around that one decision. You may not feel different after one week. But after a few weeks and certainly after a year, you will see the difference. And you will understand why, after all these years, the Church still says with confidence that Sunday still matters.”
Father Peter Muha, pastor of St. Mary in Crown Point, stated the message is clear: “What are we willing to do to get to know Jesus better?” He explained that Sunday Mass, regular confession, daily prayer, reading the Scriptures, participating in service opportunities, becoming a lector or extraordinary minister of Communion or joining the choir are just some of the ways in which the faithful can deepen their faith and become more involved in the mission of the Church.
“We are at the start of a new year, the time to make resolutions,” Father Muha said. “Losing weight, exercising more, spending less … these are all great resolutions. But the best resolution we can make is one that helps us deepen our relationship with Jesus. As the Christmas card puts it: ‘Wise men still seek him.’”
Father Kevin McCarthy agreed, stating the best way possible to begin the new season is “together, in the presence of the Lord, with hearts open to what He wants to do. Bring your family, invite a friend, and come ready to start the year with faith and hope and love.”
The pastor of Nativity of Our Savior in Portage said that as Catholics step into a brand-new year, they should do so with hearts full of gratitude. While the past year held its share of victories, challenges, prayers answered, and lessons learned, he said, God proved faithful. He added if people stop and look back, they will clearly see moments where God’s grace sustained them and God’s hand guided them forward.
At the same time, Father McCarthy said a new year invites people not to live in yesterday, but to embrace what God desires to do next. He shared that the prophet Isaiah reminded people that God specializes in new beginnings.
“He is not finished with us, nor is His work among us complete,” he said. “Each new season carries fresh opportunities for growth, healing, and renewed purpose.
Father McCarthy continued, “May this be a year where we release what holds us back and embrace what God is calling us toward. With expectancy and trust, we step forward together, confident that the God who has carried us this far is already at work in the days ahead.”
Photo Credit: Getty Images/Kara Gebhardt
