Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice! — Psalm 96:11

Mass Readings: 1 John 2:18-21 / John 1:1-18 

Light Overcomes Darkness 

We live in jittery times and prognostications and prophecies about “The End” come thick and fast in late December. 

The apostle John sets us straight when we start living fearfully about tomorrow. First, he tells us to look for the Antichrist, not in some horror show or elaborate conspiracy theory, but wherever Jesus Christ and His Church are rejected and denied. (Including looking in the mirror!) The Antichrist isn’t just someday: he’s now (1 Jn 2:18-21). But even more importantly, John tells us that “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (Jn 1:5). It’s no accident that the Church picks this day — the last one of the year and New Year’s Eve — to remind us that Jesus remains the Lord of history and of hope.  

Prayer: Father, help us to remember that Jesus always overcomes the darkness with His Light.