Lunar New Year’s Day: Prayer for Peace in the New Year
No fixed feast day in the calendar
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On New Year’s morning, the family goes to Mass to pray for peace, then picks a Bible verse for the year
What is this feast?
Tết, the Vietnamese Lunar New Year, is the biggest celebration of the year for the Vietnamese people. The Church in Vietnam sets aside the first three days of the year for prayer: on the First Day, for peace in the new year; on the Second Day, to remember our ancestors, grandparents and parents; on the Third Day, to make our work holy. The Vietnamese liturgical calendar calls the Mass of the First Day the New Year’s Mass, with several sets of readings to choose from. Because Tết follows the lunar calendar, this day falls on a different date of the solar calendar every year.
The story
On New Year’s Eve and on the morning of the First Day, the churches are full and joyful. At the New Year’s Eve Mass, the Church reads the blessing that God taught Aaron to give the people: may the Lord bless and keep them, look kindly on them and give them peace (cf. Nm 6:22-27). In one of the New Year’s Mass readings, Jesus teaches us not to worry about tomorrow: “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides.” (Mt 6:33).
In many parishes, after Mass, the priest gives everyone a lộc Thánh: small rolled paper scrolls, each with a verse from the Bible, hung on a mai tree or kept in a basket. Each person picks one, reads it aloud, thinks about it and chooses one good deed to live out that Word of God in the new year. A lộc Thánh is not a fortune telling good or bad luck: every verse is the Word of God, and every verse is a gift.
Why does the Church celebrate this feast?
The Church wants the new year to begin with God, because every day and every month belongs to him. True peace does not come from luck or from lucky and unlucky days, but from Jesus: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.” (Jn 14:27). Saint Paul also teaches: “Have no anxiety at all” (Phil 4:6), but pray and give thanks to God in every situation.
A lesson for you
- On the morning of the First Day, wish your grandparents and parents a happy New Year and go to Mass with your whole family.
- Put your Bible verse where you do your homework and read it again every week.
- Wish peace to everyone, and make up with anyone you are still angry with.
Identifying marks
- A yellow mai blossom tree hung with small red paper scrolls: these are the lộc Thánh, “holy gifts”, each scroll carrying a verse of the Word of God; picking a lộc Thánh is a beautiful custom of Vietnamese Catholics, who receive the Word of God as a New Year’s gift.
- A little girl in a pink áo dài (the traditional Vietnamese long dress) reaching up to pick a scroll, her father bending down to help her: parents help their children receive the Word of God.
- The parish priest in white, with a gold stole, holding a basket of scrolls: the priest has just celebrated the New Year’s Mass and gives the Word of God to his flock.
- Grandparents and the mother in áo dài, hands joined and smiling: three generations together thank God for the old year and entrust the new year to him.
- The church door open, with a cross and lit candles inside: the family has just taken part in the Mass praying for peace.
- Red lanterns, a pot of yellow chrysanthemums, a kumquat tree heavy with fruit: decorations that make Tết bright and joyful, not lucky charms.
The text on this page is the card in the Catholic Information app, word for word.
Compiled by i-Catholic · About