Feast of the Holy Family of
Jesus, Mary and Joseph
Luke 2:41-52
December 27, 2015
Our families are fiercely
attacked than never before in any history of humanity. Divorce, infidelity, domestic
violence, child abuse and labor, sexual exploitation, pornography,
contraception, abortion, and dehumanizing poverty are diseases that threaten
the family. It is a sacred duty of every Christian to protect the family. Yet,
why we need to guard the family from all these evil?
One
of the ultimate reasons is that it is within the family that we all learn the
best things in life. Aside from learning to say ‘Mama’ or how to walk, we learn
to love genuinely, to trust others, to be faithful to one other, to give
generously, and to make true sacrifice. If we are always hesitant to love, or
unwilling to share, the root causes may be in the family. We did not see these
virtues strive in our family. St. Teresa of Avila herself testified in her autobiography,
“If I had not been so wicked it would
have been a help to me that I had parents who were virtuous and feared God, and
also that the Lord granted me His favor to make me good.”
Jesus
was born into a family. It was not a perfect family since Mary and Joseph was
not rich and perhaps could not provide much for Jesus, but still, Mary and
Joseph were the right parents for Jesus. He obeyed His Father as He saw Mary
who had been obedient to God’s will in the Annunciation. He was hard-working
preacher because Jesus was trained by dedicated Joseph, the carpenter. Most
importantly, if Jesus was able to love fully and sacrifice Himself for our
salvation, it is because He saw in Mary and Joseph who wholeheartedly willing
to abandon everything for the sake of Jesus.
Family
may be just the smallest unit in the society, but we need to remember our
salvation comes from the family. Our journey to heaven takes its first step in
our families.
Br.
Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP
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