My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ,

The New Year of 2026, which the divine grace and ineffable loving-kindness of God has granted us, let it not be merely another number added to the age of humanity or one more year added to our personal age, but the year in which we dare to make the boldest dream of our soul come true: the vision of holiness. This is God’s highest calling to us: “Be holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:16; Leviticus 11:44).

Holiness is not theory. It is a daily practice won with sweat and blood. It is an ascetic struggle; “the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force” (Matt. 11:12). It is small daily choices that become habit, and habit that becomes the nature of God within us. St. John of Kronstadt said, “Holiness is not performing miracles. It is having so much love in your heart that anyone who comes near you feels Christ!”

The vision and goal of holiness have nothing to do with the holiness of the “perfect,” the “sinless” who imagine they never err, but with the holiness of sinners who fall and, through repentance, rise again; who weep and forgive; who love even their enemy, even while still hurting from the evil done to them.

Therefore, let us make the only goal of 2026 to love Christ more and more, and every single day, through struggle and ascetic effort, to become like Him. The Incarnation of Christ and the entire mystery of the Divine Economy have precisely this purpose: to restore us and lead us from being in the image to being in the likeness of God. We are all images of God by creation. We all possess this gift. By grace we all possess what God is by essence. And our destiny is likeness to God—our theosis.

How is this accomplished? There is only one way: through divine eros. The Church calls each of us to fall passionately in love with the Bridegroom of our souls, Christ. Only in this way can the believer be united with Christ and become like Christ. For when you love someone deeply, you want to become like them. And then holiness comes of itself; it is the natural consequence.

And when we truly love Christ more than anything else in life, then it becomes very easy to “love our neighbor as ourselves” (cf. Mt. 22:39). Then we will bless those who curse us. We will gladly give up our place, our time, our heart to our fellow human beings to ease their pain. Through our love we will become “little Christs” in a world that thirsts for genuine love.

Let holiness become our daily concern and personal choice:  

“Today I will be more patient.  

Today I will not judge anyone.  

Today I will say a kind word to someone who needs it.  

Today I will pray for my enemy.  

Today I will forgive the one who wronged me.  

Today I will be the first to smile.”

May the Lord who became man so that we might become holy keep us close to Him every moment of this new year. Let us walk steadily on the path of holiness, for this alone is truly worthwhile. That is why every day in the Church we pray: “For the remaining time of our life to be completed in peace and repentance, let us ask of the Lord.”

His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew sends all of us His paternal wishes and blessings that we may live the new year with the vision of holiness.

I offer the very same wish, on behalf of the clergy and co-laborers of the Orthodox Metropolis of Korea and Exarchate of Japan: May we all become saints.

Happy and Blessed New Year!

With much love and special honor in the Lord,  

+ Metropolitan Ambrosios of Korea and Exarch of Japan