[ Today's Readings ]
Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety.”
Is this really the example we want for the feast of the Holy Family? If we were trying to think of biblical examples of family life we would probably choose something else first. We'd want an example where everyone was more considerate and nobody had to worry.
But the Church is realistic. Even the perfect family can't always have perfect circumstances. There are times when Jesus must put his heavenly Father before his earthly parents. He is obedient to them as much as he can be but his Father's house has the priority.
Although this causes his mother and father to worry about him it is precisely this that allows their family life to work so well. It is because God comes first that when they run into issues like this they are able to respond with love.
Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved,
heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience,
bearing with one another and forgiving one another,
if one has a grievance against another;
as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do.
They show us what family life can be. It isn't always a life free from worry. But it is a life so transformed by compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, and forgiveness that we can have a deeper peace even when life gives us cause for anxiety.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly,
as in all wisdom you teach and admonish one another,
singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs
with gratitude in your hearts to God.
When we feel afraid because something important seems to be missing in our lives let us return to the Father's house. Let forgiveness reestablish any relationships which are damaged. We can watch as our own anxiety gives way to the peace of Christ. The trust which Jesus shows in his heavenly Father begins to mark us as well.
See what love the Father has bestowed on us
that we may be called the children of God.
And so we are.
It is only when the Father is at the forefront that we our families can live as God intends us to live. Only with the love and forgiveness that come from him alone do we truly manage to honor fathers and mothers or take care of wives and children. But what wonderful blessed lives we live when he does come first.
Blessed is everyone who fears the LORD,
who walks in his ways!
For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork;
blessed shall you be, and favored.
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