So when does the church proclaim the new year? Typically it is the first Sunday in Advent. However, the scriptures seem other than joyous. On the recent First Advent, the Gospel was from Mark. Jesus said to his disciples, “In those days, after that suffering, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.” Nope, doesn’t make it
I would make a case for the Sunday after the Epiphany, Jesus’ baptism. This is Mark’s birth story since he didn’t write one for Bethlehem.