IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF THE HOLY FAMILY OF NAZARETH ~ CookingFood.Org

“HONEY FROM THE ROCK”

31st December 2017.

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SUNDAY, CHRISTMAS OCTAVE

FEAST OF THE HOLY FAMILY

Reading 1: Sir3:3-7, 14-17 Sirach sets forth the Old Testament ideal of family life, an ideal that emphasizes mutual obligations and the rewards in store for those who fulfil their obligations. It is a brief commentary on the commandment to honour one’s father and mother. This entails not only obeying them when we are young, but caring for them then they get old.

Res. Psalm: Ps 127: 1-5 Blessed are those who fear the Lord, they and their families will be happy and prosper.

Reading 2: Col 3:12-21 Paul's ideal for family living is based on mutual love and respect for and between each member of the family. He stresses that the atmosphere of love should reign in a Christian family, with a special emphasis on mutual forgiveness.

Gospel: Lk 2: 22-40 This relates the presentation of the child Jesus in the temple, and also provides us with a brief glimpse of his life at Nazareth.

(We are using the readings from our local liturgical calendar. However, the New Lectionary has introduced a new set of readings for Year B: I-Gen 15:1-6; 21:1-3, Res-Ps 105:1-9, II-Heb 11:8,11-12,17-19 and G-Lk 2:22-40. Please confirm the readings in your local liturgical calendar.)

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IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF THE HOLY FAMILY OF NAZARETH

Today, we honour the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. Generally, we tend to have a flawless picture of the Holy Family. Angels whispering in the ears of Mary and Joseph telling them what to do in moments of doubt. We tend to see the home at Nazareth as a haven of uninterrupted calm, perfect harmony, and complete understanding. But such a picture bears less resemblance to the reality than do the glossy travel brochures. We are not told very much about the life of the Holy Family in the Gospels. But we are given glimpses. With the help of these, as well as reading between the lines, we get quite a different picture. We see that the Holy Family had at least its fair share of storms, and in that respect was a normal and typical family.

When the time came for Jesus to be born, Joseph and Mary could find no accommodation. To have all doors shut in your face is not a nice feeling. Their joy at the birth of the child was short-lived. No sooner was he born than he became the target of Herod’s murderers, so that Joseph and Mary had to flee to a foreign country. There they knew what it was like to be an alien, a refugee. When Jesus was twelve, during a visit to Jerusalem, he got lost. Joseph and Mary sought him with fear and sorrow in their hearts. During his public life Mary did not always understand what he was doing. She saw him being taken over by the crowds. Finally came the humiliation of the crucifixion, when a sword of sorrow pierced her heart, and a real sword pierced the heart of her Son. The Holy Family never lived a sheltered and trouble-free life. But, it is for this reason that the Holy Family is a model for us. Our families are often visited by sorrow, misunderstandings, and problems of one kind or another. Our lives together are often disrupted, sometimes perhaps broken up altogether. We should not grow disheartened. The Holy Family helps us to grow in more depth in our relationships. Sorrow and problems bring the family together. We are always welcomed, and forgiveness, love, and understanding always await me. Jesus and Mary and Joseph help us grow in grace and favour with God and with one another.

We are called today to reflect on the significance and mission of the Christian family. Father, mother and children make up a family. Each individual of the family is a valued, loved and respected person. The perfection of family life is seen in the holy family of Nazareth. In this family we find, Joseph ever attentive to listen to the voice of God, Mary ever ready to do God’s will and the Son Jesus ever obedient to his parents. It was a communion of different persons. Do our families live in communion or just live together because of necessity?

The basic foundations on which families are built are love and life. Each member of the family enhances other members of the family with love. God the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit share their love and life with the whole of creation, particularly with the human beings. Jesus shared this love and life with His own family of Nazareth, with Joseph and Mary and with the whole of humanity. How much of life and love do I breathe into my own family? The family is a domestic Church. It represents the Church at the family level. The most important thing that a family requires is family prayer. As we have heard many times, ‘a family that prays together lives together’. It gets strength and nutrition to live only in and through prayer. Do I enter my home as if entering a Church?

Today’s Gospel, besides Mary, Joseph, and Jesus, features two old people, Simeon and Anna, who had been waiting and praying for the coming of the Messiah all their lives. Another moral for family life is that old people, especially grandparents, need children, and children need grandparents—and old people.

Prayer: Lord, help us to live as a holy family, united in respect and love. May our communion strengthen us to face the troubles of life. Jesus, I trust in You. Amen.