THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK: Offaly columnist advises to 'be a beginning in a broken world in 2026'

“2024 sure was full of scary things…” That was how we opened the year of 2025 not long ago. Simple words. Honest words. Words weighted with truth because the year was full of scary things. It is sobering and more than a little unsettling that we could write those very same words again as we now step into the New Year of 2026. For many of the same reasons. And if we are honest, perhaps even more. The world feels darker now. More fragile. More divided.

The headlines never seem to rest, war, displacement, violence, hatred, racism, misogyny, loneliness, homelessness. Fear seeps into our conversations, our homes, even our prayers. Carrying so much sorrow, uncertainty, and heartbreak can be exhausting. And yet, here we are. At the beginning of a new year. Still standing. Still breathing. Still capable of love. That alone is grace. “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” (Isaiah 43:19).

A new year does not arrive with answers or solutions. It comes quietly, like dawn after a long night, carrying only a tender invitation, to begin again.

When the world feels scary

When the world feels frightening, and it does, we are often tempted to shut down. To turn away. To harden our hearts in self-protection. But fear has never healed the world. Love has. I am reminded of Fred Rogers, whose words have steadied hearts for generations: “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping."

And of Donna Ashworth’s gentle truth: “When the world seems bad, remember, most people are good.” Those words matter now more than ever. Because even today, especially today, the helpers are still here. They are feeding the hungry. Sheltering the homeless. Holding the hands of the dying. Teaching children in broken classrooms. Praying quietly and lighting candles when no one is watching. Showing up when it would be easier to stay away. And perhaps the most important truth of all is this, you are, or can be, one of those helpers. The work you do. The values you stand for. The kindness you choose. The courage you summon on the hard days. All of it brings light into a world that often feels dark and dangerous. Seeing the resilience, compassion, and quiet determination of helpers, of people like you, is what gives me hope as we enter this new year. Because remember this, I really genuinely feel that there are more of us who are trying to help, trying to love, and trying to do good.

The weight we carry into 2026

We do not step into this new year unmarked. We carry grief that never made the headlines. We carry names written deep into our hearts. We carry regret, disappointment, and exhaustion. We carry the ache of unanswered prayers. We cannot undo what has been. But we can allow it to be redeemed. We cannot control what lies ahead. But we can choose how we will meet it. So we live in the only place we truly can — now. “Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.” (Matthew 6:34). Perhaps 2026 does not ask us for grand resolutions or heroic promises. Perhaps it asks something far quieter and far braver! To keep loving. To keep praying and lighting candles. To keep helping. To keep caring. To keep showing up. To keep doing good.

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Ordinary people, extraordinary love

Think of them. Maria, sitting on a park bench after losing everything in a fire, until a stranger places a blanket around her shoulders and reminds her she is not invisible. Jamie, hardened by years of pain, sharing his last meal with a stranger and discovering, to his own surprise, that love still lives inside him. A nurse kneeling beside children injured by war, whispering lullabies while bombs fall. A teacher staying late in a flooded school, drying books and saying softly, “Your future still matters.” These are not grand gestures that make the news. They are quiet miracles. “Let your light shine before others.” (Matthew 5:16)

The courage to love deeply

To love deeply is not sentimental. It is demanding. It costs us something. It asks us to forgive when the apology never comes. To remain tender when bitterness feels safer. To choose mercy over being right. “Above all, love one another deeply.” (1 Peter 4:8). In a world addicted to outrage, love is resistance. In a culture of indifference, compassion is revolutionary. In times like these, hope is not naïve, it is courageous.

The power of prayer and presence

When times are tough and they are, we return to what sustains us. Prayer. Adoration. Scripture. The quiet grace of daily Mass. The stillness where God reminds us, "You are not alone." These are not escapes from the world’s pain. They are wells from which we draw the strength to face it. It is there, kneeling, waiting, listening, that we remember who we are, and whose we are.

Be a beginning

Perhaps the holiest prayer we can whisper as 2026 begins is this: “Help me to be a beginning.” A beginning of hope for someone drowning in despair. A beginning of peace in a home filled with tension. A beginning of welcome for the lonely, homeless and forgotten. A beginning of light where fear has taken root. We may not change the whole world. But together we can move it. Because there are more helpers than we think. Because when we come together to help, quietly, faithfully, prayerfully, lovingly then love multiplies. “Whatever you did for one of the least of these, you did for me.” (Matthew 25:40)

Life is still a gift

Life is fragile. Life is fleeting. And still, life is a gift. To choose joy in the midst of sorrow is an act of faith. To celebrate goodness in a broken world is an act of defiance. So let us step into 2026 not just older, but kinder. Not just surviving, but serving. Not hardened, but open. There is no greater thing we can do in this life than to love someone, care for someone, or simply be there. Be that someone.

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Thought for the week

As your thought for the week, ask yourself, Who needs my kindness today? Where can I help, quietly and without recognition? What small act of love can I offer that might ripple further than I will ever know? Remember, there are lots of us out there. And together, we can do an awful lot of helping and an awful lot of good. Let me leave you with one of my Prayers for the New Year 2026 - "Loving God, As we stand at the doorway of a new year, our hearts are full of hope and hurt, gratitude and grief. The world feels frightening at times. So remind us to look for the helpers and to be among them. Give us courage to love deeply. Strength to forgive generously. Grace to serve faithfully. Root us in prayer. Sustain us through the Eucharist. Draw us close in moments of fear. Make us a beginning, Of hope where there is despair, Of light where there is darkness, Of love where the world feels broken. And when we grow tired, remind us, We are not alone. There are more of us. And together, with Your help, we can move the world to do good. Amen." Le cúnamh Dé. With God’s help, may 2026 find us loving, helping, praying, doing good and believing again and again.