Feast of the Holy Family
–
December 27, 2020
Although major feast days dedicated to
each member of the Holy Family —
Jesus, Mary, and Joseph —
also exist, the Feast of the Holy Family commemorates their life together, and
the celebration focuses on family life. The veneration for the Holy Family as a
group, rather than as individuals, did not arise until the 17th century and was
not officially recognized until the feast day was formally instituted in 1921
under Pope Benedict XV. Originally celebrated on the Sunday after Epiphany
(January 6), the Feast of the Holy Family was moved to the Sunday after
Christmas in 1969, bringing it within the Christmas season, when families
gather to celebrate Christmas. No one imagined that in 2020 there would be a
global pandemic that would restrict family gatherings to the immediate family
living under the same roof. The extended family of aunts and uncles and cousins,
and in some cases even the gathering of parents and offspring would be
considerably discouraged for both Thanksgiving and Christmas. Whether we are
together as a family or disconnected, we know the importance of family. It is
the foundation of our society and our faith community.
In the reading from Sirach we learn
that God wants to create a new family, a family that’s
commits to worship one God, trusting that this ‘new’ God will bless them now and in the
future. From Paul’s letter to the Hebrews, we call
Abraham the Father of Faith because of his trust in God. The gospel teaches
that no matter who we are –
even Jesus – obedience must be a part of life. “Obedience,” we know comes from the Latin verb obaudire, meaning, “to listen carefully. “ There is military obedience that calls
for following orders without question –
tending toward blind obedience. Christian obedience is, on the other hand,
closer to the Latin; it means to listen attentively. By listening attentively, “the child grew and became strong,
filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.”
It is in our family homes that we grow
in our understanding of life. It is there that we acquire principles by which
we should live and relate to others. It is there, in the “domestic church”,
that God is acknowledged, that prayer is learned, and devotion is formed. It is
there that our spirit is nurtured at the family table in which we share a
communion of food for the body, the mind and the soul.
It is in our family homes that our
intellectual formation foundation takes place, where books are read, articles
are discussed, and critical thinking is developed. It is there that we learn to
respect that which is above and beyond what is merely popular. For what is
popular is ever-changing; it has no absolutes, nothing that lasts; only things
that evaporate with the coming of the next new fad.
How can all of this vital formation
happen if one is not being raised in a family? Without it education, religious
devotion, and the formation of our hearts and souls in the art loving
commitment tend to all collapse.
Is it any wonder, then, that our
Church gives reverent attention each year at this time to all that it means to
be family? For even God himself chose to come among us not as some sort of
space alien that stepped off of a cosmic spaceship, not as some sort of
mysterious guru discovered on top of a mountain, but rather as a member of a
human family, with all that it entails, with the joys and sorrows all families
experience.
In thanking God for the gift of the
Christ Child, let us also thank God for our mothers and fathers, sisters and
brothers, and the wonderful gift that we have been given, our family.
God bless all the families in our
parish. May they be a shining light for all of us.
Fr. Don, cp