What does the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph mean to our families today? That’s the question that Bishop Earl Boyea now attempts to answer in today’s brief reflection upon the Feast of the Holy Family which we celebrate this year on December 31. Here’s what he has to say:
“This feast floats around, but I have placed it here since no saint is honored on December 30th. Now we all love Jesus and Mary and Joseph and, thus, for us to honor this Holy Family makes a great deal of sense, especially just after the birth of this Holy Child.”
“However, this is not an ordinary family. Jesus has no siblings, which is, of course, becoming much more common today. Joseph was not his real father, as we know from the incident in the Temple. And Mary and Joseph did not have sexual relations. Some might question how this family can be a model for all other families.”
“What does, as St. Pope Paul VI once said, the school of Nazareth teach us? Let us start with Mary. Her whole life is summed up in that “Yes” to God which allowed for the incarnation of the Son of God into our world. Every family will hear a lot of “No’s,” usually yelled at one another. We need to make sure that our lies in our families are always lived out in the context of our greater “Yes” to God both for ourselves and out of love for the other members of the family. Everything we do or say or think should be aimed at giving God the glory.”
“Joseph was a carpenter. Every family survives on work. Work in and for the family should be the expected routine of every member of the family. This is noble since it expresses who we are and allows each to contribute to the good of all. Much of the work we do may be routine, but if offered up for the others it, in fact, always gives glory to God.”
“Jesus remained obedient to them. His obedience to his parents was, in fact, nothing other than his filial obedience to his Heavenly Father. That obedience was born out of love and was a manifestation of love. It was never slavish, but it was always faithful.”
“Sisters and brothers, the Holy Family does teach us to obey and to work and to say “Yes” to God. We actually live these truths out in our day to day behaviors. Yes, we fail. We seldom live up to the model presented to us. Yet, we continue to strive because we know we are loved by the Father and we want to return to him our very best.”
* First broadcast 2021