HOMILY: FEAST
OF THE HOLY FAMILY OF
JESUS, MARY
& JOSEPH
Fr. Udoekpo, Michael Ufok
v Sir 3:2-6, 12-14;
v Psalm 128:1-5;
v Col 3:12-21
v Matt 2:13-15, 19-23
It is not surprising that following the celebration of
Christmas, the Birth of Christ, we re-gather today to contemplate and celebrate
the virtues of the Holy Family of Mary, Joseph and Jesus. In fact, this Feast
makes a lot sense for us since we are all fruits of our beautiful families: a
community of parents and children, brothers, sisters and relatives. In today’s
feast, we celebrate the responsibility we owe one other.
The
family of Joseph, Mary and Jesus was a family of “Yes!” and openness to God.
Mary, in Luke’s Gospel says, “Be it done to me according to your Word,”
(Luke 1:38). The righteous Joseph in Matthew’s Gospel quietly
took Mary home as the Angel Gabriel had told him (Matt 1:24). The
righteous Joseph provided for the safety of baby Jesus in Egypt. Jesus’
parents, Mary and Joseph were humble. They paid close attention to the
whispering of the Holy Spirit in their ears.
Besides
humility and righteousness, it was a family that handled their difficulties and
confusion with prayer, and absolute trust in God. A typical example is the
Christmas mystery of the sudden pregnancy of Mary by the divine agent.
Pregnancy, I believe would be a very delicate period for women. It is a time
that women enter upon a cycle of hopes of fears. She sees herself different in
the mirror and is conscious of the risks and sufferings awaiting her. In such
circumstances our husbands would not want to approach their wives as if they
are in the military grounds, but like Joseph with gentleness and virtues of
love, and joy (cf. Udoekpo, M. Family Functions, 1997, p. 19).
Joseph
handled this well. He listened and was opened to the impulses of the Holy
Spirit. He took Mary home (Matt 1:24). He loved, honored
and respected Mary, and the child Jesus as well. Joseph a quiet and righteous
man knew what his role was as a father. Though quiet, he had a lot to
thoughtfully say by his family life style.
He
knew that every child needs a father and a mother (cf. 1989 Redemptoris
Custos of Pope John Paul II). Joseph did not walk away from his
fatherly responsibility as some modern fathers would do today. He knew he
was called to love and protect the child Jesus, the New Moses (Matt
2:13-15, 19-23), just as the old Moses was kept save in the Book of
Exodus 1–4. He rose up and fled with the child Jesus to Egypt for safety as
directed by the Angel of the Lord (Matt 2:13).
Joseph,
besides loving and respecting Mary must have also taught Jesus good carpentry
trades and skills. From Mary and Joseph Jesus must have also learn their basic
customs, how to say shalom, “good morning daddy,’ “good morning Mom,”
and how to say some basic Jewish prayers, and meaning of things
around him – patience, and compassion for fellow human beings-that would come
to reflect in Jesus public ministry; in his turning water into wine at Cana in
Galilee (Jhn. 2), in his multiplication of fish and bread, in his
healing and forgiving ministries.
Joseph
knew his job and his responsibility to Mary and Jesus. Jesus also knew his job.
He was an obedient child. I am sure you would recall the incidence in Luke
2:41-51 when the boy Jesus stayed back in the Jerusalem after he
had made and annual visit with his parents Mary and Joseph. It took Mary and
Joseph about three days to anxiously and lovingly retrace Jesus to the Temple
in Jerusalem where he was deeply involved in a discussion with teachers and
scholars. We are told Mary and Joseph were not only anxious about their child,
but were astonished at finding Jesus in the midst of temple teachers. But
scriptures tells us that after all said and done, Jesus went back home with his
parents and “was obedient to them,” (Luke 2:51). Jesus grew up in
wisdom, age and favor before God and man (Luke 2:52). He obeyed
his parents.
Echoes of
such obedience are heard in the alternate first reading of today (Sir 3:2-6,
12, and 14), that whoever honors his parents atones for sins and
preserves himself/herself from them. When he prays he is heard, and whoever
respects the mum stores up wealth and riches for him/herself and will live long
(cf. Exodus 20:12; and Deut 5:16).
You and I
know, especially our parents that we live in a different time today.
Today, there are many fathers and mothers who walk away from their
mutual responsibility to their children, leaving them third parties under
the name of personal freedom or “too busy at work." Divorce has also
become the order of the day to the detriment of our children. Today’s
society is also searching for where to draw the line between the
rights of parents and that of the children: the movie they watch, the drinks
the take, the conversation they engage and the examples they are shown. Are
they adult food, drinks, movies? What examples do we show to our kids? How we
treat each other, how we return home from work and on time, join the family at
meals and how we relate and respect our next door neighbors? What about our
faith and sexuality: how do we live or express them both at homes in the
public- knowing that our kids, the future leaders, are watching us!
I grew
up as a sixth child in a family of 4 surviving brothers and two sisters from
same mom and dad. Customarily we respect our parents. We honor them. We show
gratitude to them for many reasons- for raising us, for breast-feeding us, for
the food, clothing, for the tuition, for teaching us the faith, name them.
We never talked back to our parents. The respect is so deep and
mutual that we cannot call our parents even our elderly ones by their first
name. Usually whenever there is any misunderstanding in our
family everybody is eager to work hard to have the matter resolved
with compassion and love.
This is the
Family Life in the Lord that St. Paul addresses in the 2nd reading (Col
3:12-21). The family is a place where each of us would learn to put on
compassion, kindness, gentleness, patience, bearing with one another and
forgiving one another. Like the Holy Family of Joseph, Mary and Jesus’ it is
place where we learn to pray, to sing Psalms, cultivate wisdom, respect, honor
one another and lay our spiritual foundation. It is a place where we
learn to visit our parents and seniors in the nursing homes, hospices and
hospital. It is a place where we learn to be our brother's and sisters'
keepers. It is a domestic sanctuary for faith, hope and love. It is
a domestic church, school of virtues, where we lay the foundation for the
values and virtues we bring to our larger Community, churches, schools, places
of work and governance.
As we
approach the table of the Holy Eucharist today, let us pray that each and every
one of us may see our homes as domestic sanctuaries. More so, we may
return home today, nourished by the virtues and exemplary family life of
Mary, Joseph and Jesus.
Refection Questions:
1. Do
you see your family as a domestic church?
2. What particular virtue can
you relate to in the family of Mary, Joseph and Jesus?
3. What do you hope and
faithfully look for in today’s families?
