Celebration

This Sunday was the celebration of the Holy Family. Jesus, Mary and Joseph together form the Holy Family in God’s plan of Salvation for the world. God sent His only Son, conceived in Mary’s womb by the Holy Spirit and Joseph called to be Father.

God has a plan for everyone. Mary was visited by the angel Gabriel to ask Mary to be the mother of Jesus and her ‘yes’ changed everything for all time. An angel appeared in dream to Joseph to ask him to accept Mary which was hard for him in the circumstances. But God had been preparing Mary and Joseph throughout their lives for this moment.

God has a plan for everyone but the plan for Mary and Joseph was so special. Mary has the title of Mother of God and Joseph is regarded as patron of the universal Church, fathers, families and workers.

Joseph was called to take the Holy Family as refugees from Bethlehem to Egypt to escape Herod because Herod feared for his own kingship and ordered the killing of children of two and under in Bethlehem and the surrounding district. Later an angel appeared again in a dream to Joseph and told him to go back to Israel when Herod was dead.  

The manner of Jesus’ birth speaks of God’s love for everyone no matter how poor and underprivileged. The Holy family became refugees. How should we regard refugees today?

Children need to be raised by love. Love makes us whole. Faith in God and openness to God’s love is the ideal setting for children to grow with the opportunity of discovering God’s plan for their life.  

This is an essential and fundamental truth of Christian Faith.

We can see in this story the wonderful dignity of each child. Each new life is made in the image of God and life is a continuum from conception to natural death.

So the feast of the Holy Family is a celebration of God’s plan for Salvation and also a celebration of the family and of life.

The more we listen to God’s Word in the bible and especially the teaching of Jesus and the more prayerfully we listen to the teaching of the Church which is God’s family, the more happy and fulfilled we will be.