I’m taking a break from New Year’s Resolutions in 2017.
Obviously I will be utterly transformed this year into an invincible goddess but I am NOT making any resolutions. I may rail against the annual splurge of good intentions, which fade as soon as the sun sets at the end of week two, but the urge to wipe the slate clean and start afresh is pretty well established in all of us and similar rituals are found in all types of societies all over the world.
It’s generally accepted that the oldest recorded instance of resolutions is that of the Babylonians, about 4000 years ago, during the feast of Akitu.
Their New Year was celebrated in March when new crops were planted. During the 12-day religious festival they also made promises to the gods to pay their debts and return any objects they had borrowed. Their king had to undergo a ritual where he was stripped of all his regal splendour and slapped really hard in the face – if tears appeared the gods were happy with him. He then made promises to the people to be a good and humble leader working for their well-being in the year to come (what a good idea).
Our own calendar owes its existence to the reform-minded emperor Julius Caesar who established January 1 as the beginning of the new year.
January was named after the god Janus with his two heads – one facing backwards and one forward – the perfect symbol for resolutions for the new year to come based on the things that needed improvement in the year just past. The Romans offered sacrifices to the deity and made promises of good conduct for the coming year.
The early Christians were quick to adapt the ritual and the first day of the new year became the traditional occasion for thinking about one’s past mistakes and resolving to do and be better in the future.
In 1740 John Wesley, founder of Methodism, created the Covenant Renewal Service, most commonly held on New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day.
Today most of us make our promises to ourselves – which is maybe why we find them so easy to break. However, no matter how seriously you take the tradition, or not, it is certainly a good time to take a moment to reflect on our lives and how we live them – let me know if you’re planning anything inspirational this year.
