Feast of the Holy Family
Reflection
When we think of the Holy Family, we usually limit our thoughts to the family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. Yet, Christmas teaches that God is at home with us. “We are one in the family of faith, sharing our small planet as together we hurl through space. This is our home and these are our brothers and sisters. We have no excuse to be irresponsible, selfish, or unjust, but we also have the invitation to rest, to find warmth, and to seek comfort in God. We are not alone. God journeys with us and we journey together.”(Thomas Hoffman) The community of earth in communion with its Creator is the holy family of which we all are a part.
Prayer
May we all be one in You.
Action
Reflect on the unity of the human family. Expand that to include the nonhuman inhabitants of our planet. How does this change your attitude toward all God’s creation?
Suggested Reading
Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But his mother treasured all these things in her heart.
Luke 2:51
Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, and patience, forbearing one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body.
Col 3: 12-21
The proclamation of the Gospel, in fact, first passes through the family to reach the various spheres of daily life. Let us fervently call upon Mary Most Holy, the Mother of Jesus and our Mother, and St Joseph her spouse. Let us ask them to enlighten, comfort and guide every family in the world, so that they may fulfill with dignity and peace the mission which God has entrusted to them.
Pope Francis
The family is a human and divine reality that should be defended and promoted as a fundamental social good.
Pope John Paul II
It can be helpful to think of humanity like a pearl necklace. Each human being is a pearl with distinct characteristics, but underneath there is a string that ties us all together, invisible to the naked eye.
Gudjon Bergmann
If tolerance, respect and equity permeate family life, they will translate into values that shape societies, nations and the world.
Kofi Annan
While I know myself as a creation of God, I am also obligated to realize and remember that everyone else and everything else are also God’s creation.
Maya Angelou
Love is the only reality and it is not a mere sentiment. It is the ultimate truth that lies at the heart of creation.
Rabindranath Tagore
Cherish your human connections – your relationships with friends and family.
Barbara Bush