Dec. 30, 2018: Holy Family C
Dec. 30, 2018: Holy Family C
Have you been on a pilgrimage as a whole family, perhaps to a shrine in New Orleans or somewhere further away? The first time my family took a pilgrimage was after my parents sold their restaurant. A terrible tragedy occurred one night at the restaurant when an armed robbery resulted in a person being shot. At that time, I was on a leave of absence from college for a year to help run my parents’ restaurant. The armed robbery took a huge toll on our family, and my parents believed that getting away for a month on vacation in Europe as a family would help us renew. Originally it began as a vacation, but because we ended up spending so much time in many Catholic Churches during the trip, it ended up being a pilgrimage. Both myself and my father at that time were atheists, so we only appreciated the architecture of the holy places. During the trip, we as a family struggled to be kind to each other. Old tensions and wounds that existed prior to the trip resurfaced. We ended up blaming each other for how badly the whole restaurant endeavor turned out. We were on the verge of tearing apart as a family at the end of the trip. That was the year 1994.
Do we believe that Jesus has a plan for our family, that he came to redeem our family? Do we believe that even when our family goes through trials and tribulations, God is faithful to us even when we are ready to give up? When the Son of God became man, he became flesh as a newborn infant within a family of St. Joseph and Blessed Mother. From the beginning Joseph and Mary faced many struggles and hardships. The miraculous conception of Jesus by the Holy Spirit in Blessed Mother’s womb was threatened by the possibility of divorce and even death. Jesus’ birth occurred, in human perspective, at the most inopportune place and time --- at night, away from family support, and in a place only fit for barn animals. Immediately, the child’s life was threatened by a power-thirsty King Herod who wanted to murder him. Some years later during the annual family pilgrimage to Jerusalem Temple, the unthinkable happens to Mary and Joseph when the child Jesus was lost for three days. All through these ups and downs of family life, St. Joseph and Blessed Mother sacrificed much to protect their child Jesus. Their fortitude to survive the trials and tribulations came from God alone. The hearts and minds of Joseph and Mary had been prepared through a life of prayer to listen and hear the voice of God. Joseph and Mary taught their son Jesus to treasure prayer, scriptures, and service for others.
Perhaps we can’t readily identify or understand the Holy Family because we don’t have family prayer life or because our family is beset by tensions and divisions. Perhaps our families are pulled away from meditating on scriptures and prayer by distractions--sports, entertainment, jobs, or items we can’t afford. If we take time to reflect, what do we hold as the center of our family? Is it love for God or something else?
The Holy Family models for us the kind of earthly family for which we should strive. To be a holy family is what a mother does to protect her family and serve her husband and her children; it is what a father does to protect his family and serve his wife and children. It is what the children do to honor and obey his parents. At the center of a holy family is a prayer life--family Rosary, reading of the scriptures, and the Holy Mass. We need to ponder on this Feast Day what we can do to change our routine in our family to feed our family with daily spiritual nourishment.
As for my family, this past June, we as the whole family joined together in pilgrimage for the first time since 24 years at the shrine of Divine Mercy in Krakow, Poland. We celebrated Holy Mass together as a family, to give thanks to God for saving our family and keeping us together. Through a miraculous grace, I became a priest, my dad attends Sunday masses regularly, and my sister named all her children after the names of Saints - Therese, Pio and Seelos. Our family is by no means a perfect family. Our family members still have old habits that annoy and hurt each other. Yet, Christ came into our family and placed His love at the heart of ours. He had mercy on our family, and performed numerous miracles over the years.
We are living at a time of grace for the family. We are called to renew our family prayer in order to make Jesus the heart of our family. How far will we go to protect our family? In order to protect our family, we need to listen, trust, and obey the direction of God. And this will not be possible without prayer being the center of our own families. May our own families become a witness of love in this world.
Do we believe that Jesus has a plan for our family, that he came to redeem our family? Do we believe that even when our family goes through trials and tribulations, God is faithful to us even when we are ready to give up? When the Son of God became man, he became flesh as a newborn infant within a family of St. Joseph and Blessed Mother. From the beginning Joseph and Mary faced many struggles and hardships. The miraculous conception of Jesus by the Holy Spirit in Blessed Mother’s womb was threatened by the possibility of divorce and even death. Jesus’ birth occurred, in human perspective, at the most inopportune place and time --- at night, away from family support, and in a place only fit for barn animals. Immediately, the child’s life was threatened by a power-thirsty King Herod who wanted to murder him. Some years later during the annual family pilgrimage to Jerusalem Temple, the unthinkable happens to Mary and Joseph when the child Jesus was lost for three days. All through these ups and downs of family life, St. Joseph and Blessed Mother sacrificed much to protect their child Jesus. Their fortitude to survive the trials and tribulations came from God alone. The hearts and minds of Joseph and Mary had been prepared through a life of prayer to listen and hear the voice of God. Joseph and Mary taught their son Jesus to treasure prayer, scriptures, and service for others.
Perhaps we can’t readily identify or understand the Holy Family because we don’t have family prayer life or because our family is beset by tensions and divisions. Perhaps our families are pulled away from meditating on scriptures and prayer by distractions--sports, entertainment, jobs, or items we can’t afford. If we take time to reflect, what do we hold as the center of our family? Is it love for God or something else?
The Holy Family models for us the kind of earthly family for which we should strive. To be a holy family is what a mother does to protect her family and serve her husband and her children; it is what a father does to protect his family and serve his wife and children. It is what the children do to honor and obey his parents. At the center of a holy family is a prayer life--family Rosary, reading of the scriptures, and the Holy Mass. We need to ponder on this Feast Day what we can do to change our routine in our family to feed our family with daily spiritual nourishment.
We are living at a time of grace for the family. We are called to renew our family prayer in order to make Jesus the heart of our family. How far will we go to protect our family? In order to protect our family, we need to listen, trust, and obey the direction of God. And this will not be possible without prayer being the center of our own families. May our own families become a witness of love in this world.
