Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph
We have just celebrated Christmas. When we think of God’s plan and all the ways in which God could have come to us, is it not truly amazing that Christ came into a home? I find it fascinating that Christ was born into a family. The implication of this reality is immense. Just as Christ’s incarnation gave new dignity to the human race, Christ’s birth into a family brought new dignity to the human family, to the home.
I offer three practical implications of Christ's birth into a family for our families.
Family: A Sacrament
A family in itself is a holy reality. It is sacred because we believe that God created the human family. However, today I am not just referring to the sanctity of the family, I am referring to the ‘sacramentality’ of the family. Christ’s incarnation into a family elevates the dignity of the family to a whole new level. The birth of Jesus into a family makes the family a ‘sacrament’. In other words, the family and the home are places of Christ encounters. The Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph is called a ‘holy family’ not merely because it was the family of Jesus, but also because the holy family was a family through whom people encountered the divine. For example, Scripture tells us that when the shepherds and the Magi reached the place where Jesus was born, they found Jesus with Mary and Joseph. It wasn’t just at his birth, but, even later, when they fled to Egypt, when they lost him in the Temple, when Jesus began his ministry at Cana, and finally when he was crucified, the Holy Family was a family where people encountered God.
Practical Implication: There is nothing more mundane than family life. It takes a lot of work to get a family to be a family – employment, parenting, education, relationships, chores, vacation, cooking, cleaning, health, illnesses, successes, failures, fights, hurts and a lot more. It is in the midst of all of these realities that Christ dwells. Today, I am inviting us to become aware that as mundane as your family is – it is a sacrament. Despite it all, Christ chooses to dwell in our family and in our homes. Our family is a sacrament.
A Holy Family is Not a Perfect Family
It is possible that the implications of the concept of the ‘family as a sacrament’ is a little unnerving for us. For many of us – holiness means perfection. But there is difference between perfection and holiness. A family is not called to strive for perfection, rather, a family is called to holiness. What does this mean? Imagining the family as a sacrament means that we recognize that each person in the family, even the most intolerable, is created, loved, and redeemed by Christ. Imagining the family as a sacrament means that amidst the imperfections of family members, we do not compromise the dignity of the family. Imagining the family as a sacrament means that even in the most mundane realities of family life, we do not lost sight of God’s presence in our family. Imagining a family as a sacrament means that we have a sense of mission – that our family is the place where others encounter the divine. Imagining the family as a sacrament means that even when hurt, failure, tragedy, and disunity stares us in our face, we are willing to forgive, to try again, to let faith guide us, and to be selfless.
Practical Implication: Let us remember that in our family life we are called to holiness, not perfection. Holiness does not mean that we will be perfect but that our imperfections become the means for us to grow in holiness.
Key to Holy Families (Not Perfect Families)
Today’s second reading from Paul’s letter to the Colossians gives us very concrete ways in which our families can be a sacrament – a place for God-encounters. He says, “Put on, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if one has a grievance against another; as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do. And over all these, put on love, that is, the bond of perfection” (Col 3:12-14).
Practical Implication: Paul’s admonition is very helpful. The bottom line is this – that being a holy family does not mean a family without difficulties, problems, pitfalls, and failure. Rather, being a holy family entails that no matter what our families endure, we do so knowing the Christ has made our family, his home. Let us, then, put on compassion, kindness, gentleness, patience, forgiveness, and love. If we can strive to do this then our families will live up to the dignity that Christ has bestowed it – a sacrament.
During this Eucharist, let us dedicate our home and our family to Christ.
- Fr. Satish Joseph