Feast of the Holy Family, a reflection

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

I hope that you had a wonderful and blessed Christmas celebration with your family and friends. In this octave of Christmas, which is in the 8 days of Christmas, we have this blessed opportunity to celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family. And why do we celebrate the Feast of Holy Family today? Because God's plan of salvation is for the human family. Our experience of God is not be an isolated experience, but a shared experience with family and friends. It's the way that God has ordered creation.

The family life, from the Beginning in the Book of Genesis, is a gift from God. We hear in the Jewish mythology, that after creating Adam, God saw that Adam was not completely happy, even though he had all animals to keep him company, and all the food for his nourishment. When God noticed that Adam was not happy, the Lord cast him into a deep sleep, and took a rib from his side, and formed a woman. And when Adam saw the woman, Eve, he exclaimed: “This one at last is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh.” In other words, from that day forward, they were no longer to live their lives apart, but together as one. According to the story from the beginning, marriage and family life is a gift from God.

But the story continues as the Evil One, in a form of a serpent, or the Leviathan, tries to disrupt God's order, and God's gift of marriage and family life. We can see from the Book of Genesis, that Marriage and family life is the first Sacrament, and it's also the first Sacrament that the Evil One tries to break apart, and destroy. He tempts the woman to eat the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. And both Adam and Eve disobey God, ate the forbidden fruit. This is known as The Fall. But the good news is that God always come to the rescue. God will always intervene when it is necessary. And God said in the first proclamation of the good news. To the Evil One he says: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers. You will strike the heel, and he will strike at your head.” In other words, good will always have the upper hand.

When the star was perfectly aligned, God sent His only beloved Son, the Lord Jesus into the human family. God did not send another person to be the Messiah, God did not send another prophet to the be the Messiah, or another person to be their king. God, himself is the Messiah. God himself is the newborn king. The Lord came into the world, born in a most humble way, born in a manger in Bethlehem (house of bread). Certainly, God, who is all powerful and all mighty, and the Lord could've chosen to be born anywhere. But it's a wonderful mystery how the Lord has chosen this humble beginning, born in a manger, surrounded by animals. Which can also be a connection to the Adam in the very beginning, that he too was surrounded by the animals.

But there were glimpses of his divinity, that this child is very special and unique. The Angels annunication to the shepherds of the field: “Do not be afraid, for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For today in the city of David, a savior has been born for you, who is Messiah and Lord. And this will be a sign for you; you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger.”

Also another sign, is from the Gospel according to Matthew, the Magi, or Kings from foreign nations, who traveled long distances because they believed that a unique star would lead them to the newborn king. So, even the birth of the Savior is written in the stars in the heavens, in the cosmos: “When the three kings saw the child with Mary his Mother, the prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.”

And certainly, the Lord doesn't want to dwell forever in a manger, but ultimately the Lord wants to dwell in our hearts. So that our hearts become the manger for the Lord. This is the mystery we celebrate during this Christmas season.

We turn to God's word for nourishment.

In the book of Sirach, God speaks through the author about the importance of caring, honoring and revering our parents. There are many blessings and rewards when that is accomplished. A house of justice, atonement for sins, many riches and blessings, a blessing for descendants, long life, comfort and consolation, removal of the debt of personal sins. So there are many blessings that flow forth when we honor our parents.

St. Paul's letter to the Colossians, urges the early Christians to bear one another and forgive one another, with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Most especially, to put on love, which is the bond of perfection. Let the peace of Christ, control your heart. And also to be thankful for all that we are and all that we have, to have gratitude in your hearts. I sometimes think about the Book of Job, and at one point, Job had everything, and then everything was taken away from him as a test, and then everything was given back to him at the end. So, knowing that all that we are and have can be taken away from us, and that helps me to be more grateful for everything that I have at the moment.

The Gospel account from Matthew, the hero in this account is St. Joseph. Joseph was a good husband and Father. God gave him some instructions, and he has chosen them well to care for Mary and the child. He took his family and flee to Egypt to protect them. When King Herod had past, he brought them back to Israel, but not to Judea because King Herod's son was the ruler, so he found a safe haven in Nazareth. Joseph was a type of person who was attentive to the warning signs, and also great faith and hope in God.

Holy Family Prayer:

Holy Family of Nazareth, make our family one with you. Help us to be instruments of peace. Grant that love, strengthened by grace, may prove mightier than all the weaknesses and trials through which our families sometimes pass. May we always have God at the center of our hearts and homes, until we are all one family, happy and at peace in our true home with you. Amen.

Introduction:

Brothers and Sisters in Christ, we continue to celebrate the mystery of the Lord's incarnation, during this octave of Christmas.

With great humility, God came to us, born in a manger.

With humility, God placed himself under the authority of Mary and Joseph, in the beauty and love of family life.

With equal humility, the Lord gives himself to us now in the form of bread and wine, in the Sacrament of Eucharist.

Let us prepare our hearts to celebrate the Sacred Mysteries...

Holy Family

Dearly Beloved,

Wishing you many graces and blessings on Today's feast of the Holy Family. May God strengthen you in your vocation as Husband, Wife, Father and Mother, son and daughter.

Today, we have the opportunity to travel with the Holy Family.

1^st Location is Egypt.


Egypt is known for the Pyramids of Giza, the Sphinx, and the Nile River. Egypt helps one to recall the story of Moses and the Exodus event. Through Moses, God shows His Almighty power over the Egyptian gods through the ten plagues.


God also protected the chosen people from the Angel of Death. Only if they have the blood of the spotless lamb sprinkled on the door posts. And in their homes, feasting on the lamb. The Angel of Death passed over their homes. It was in Egypt that the Chosen People had their first Passover. And subsequently, every Passover recalls how God saved His people.


Christ is born. He is the Emmanuel, God with us. Christ is the Light that is now in the world. But King Herod desperately wants to extinguish this light. He seeks to end the child's life. But the Angel reveals to Joseph in a dream of their escape.


The Holy Family will find refuge and shelter in Egypt. The Holy Family re-lives the story of Moses, the Passover, and the Exodus Event in Egypt.

When I am trying to center my life in Christ, what are some of my interruptions? With the help of the Holy Spirit, how can I lessen those interruptions? Or how I can learn to flee from them? Am I aware that compared to my idols and attachments, Almighty God is more powerful and more valuable.

Second location is Nazareth

After the departure to Egypt, the Holy Family returned to their hometown of Nazareth. In the Gospel, it is said with great disdain: “can anything good come from Nazareth?"

It is here in Nazareth that the Holy Family found shelter and refuge. Nazareth is a poor and desolate town, known for corruption and immorality. But Nazareth is where the Holy Family dwels and where Christ spent most of his childhood.

Compared to Jerusalem, Nazareth is not a holy place. It is rather obscure, and off the beaten path. But it is here that the Holy Family lived out their vocation as a family; not public but secretive. So secret that little is written about the childhood of Christ.

Nazareth would be a place in which they could worship the Heavenly Father, and to live out their vocation without any witnesses, other than Almighty Father. In other words, the Holy Family were faithful and devoted to God, regardless of witnesses.

Can I be God-fearing, and a good disciple of Christ in public (visible before others) and also in secret when no one is watching? When in Jerusalem (public place) and in Nazareth (secret place), am I faithfully serving God and keeping his commandments?


It is so that Christ lives in me, in and out of season, day in and day out. Whether people are watching or not, regardless of witnesses, my only concern is to be God-fearing, and a good, kind and loving person.

Location #3 - Bethlehem

Bethlehem in Hebrew means the house of bread. It is the location of Christ's birth. But in Bethlehem, something terrible has happened. King Herod in an attempt to extinguish the light that is now in the world, repeated the Exodus story. Just like Pharaoh, he made martyrs, the Holy Innocents.

It's true the saying: "one who does not know history is bound to repeat it."

You can imagine the sadness in Bethlehem when King Herod carried out his command. He ordered for the massacre of infant boys, hoping to take the life of the Christ-Child.

We live in a Bethlehem today, because preventing birth is legalized in our nation and considered acceptable. King Herod is stilll living today in the form of that commonly accepted norm. He is making more and more martyrs of Holy Innocents. I may often feel powerless against King Herod. But you know that King David defeated Gigantic Goliath with a small pebble. So it is with the small things that we can do in public (Jerusalem) and in private (Nazareth), to be aware of King Herod, and his attempt to extinguish the light. May the Holy Spirit give you courage.


May God bless you!

Holy Family - year A

Dearly Beloved,

The humble beginnings of Christ's birth continues in the story of the Holy Family's flee to Egypt.  The forces of darkness (King Herod and King Archelaus) is threatened by the light that is breaking in the midst.  Fearing that this Newborn King will take rule, lives of the Innocents are taken.  This forces the Holy Family to take refuge in a gentile territory, a foreign land, Egypt.  

But as the early Christians listened to this story, it harkens back to the story of Genesis and Exodus.  Israel and his descendants also found refuge in the foreign land of Egypt.  

The parallels of the Old Testament and New Testament allows the listener to see how the Holy Family re-lives the Exodus event, but more importantly how they will bring it to perfection through obedience to Almighty God.  And the promise of the covenant will be fulfilled in the Paschal Lamb, Christ The Lord.

"There was no room for them at the inn."  The Holy Family could not find lodging in Bethlehem.  The current kings of Judea wanted to bring an end to the child's life.  Imagine what the Holy Family went through just to find shelter and refuge.  

I imagine St Joseph knocking at all the doors in Bethlehem and hoping that someone is kind enough to give them room.  But St Joseph continues to knock at our doors, hoping that we can make room in our heart for the blessed Mother and the Christ Child.  

I want to make room for Christ in my heart.  Lord, may you find shelter and refuge in my soul.  Lord, I believe that you are the Newborn King.   I want you to reign.  Praise be Jesus Christ, the newborn King.