FAMILY LIFE IN THE LORD
When God sent His Son to us,
He chose to send Him as a Baby so that we might see His love for us and focus
on this tiny Child. And, He did it in this family setting. He entered our human
situation in the context of a family.
Henri Nouwen wrote this
inspiring little piece while reflecting on the events of the Holy Family. He
titled it "Protection":
"God does take us out of
the world but helps us to live in it. I am becoming aware of this in my prayer
life, where often I feel a protective Presence of God and angels amid
distractions, fears, temptations and doubts. At these times, I feel surrounded
by cosmic goodness... gentleness... kindness... and acceptance. I feel as if
large wings of angels keep me safe. Ever felt that? This protection I feel is
not the protection of a wall... or armor... or a metal screen. It is very
soft... gentle... caring. It is more the protection of a hand on my shoulder...
a kiss on my forehead... or smiling eyes looking at me."
We are not lifted out of this
seductive world. We are not removed from violence, hatred, lust and greed.
Indeed, we truly can feel them in the center of our being - stomping and
screaming. They are very restless and noisy. They always demand attention and
never seem to get tired of bothering you and me. Still, if we reflect on this,
there is the hand, and those lips, and those eyes that protect us. It is at
those times that WE KNOW WE ARE SAFE!
In today's Gospel, Matthew
tells us that "an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and
said, 'Rise, take the Child and His mother, flee to Egypt'" (Mt 2:13).
It's a family affair - Jesus, Mary and Joseph - through life's ups and downs.
When God sent His Son to us, He chose to send Him as a Baby so that we might
see His love for us and focus on this tiny Child. And, He did it in this family
setting. He entered our human situation in the context of a family.
During this time in which we
live, there is a deep pessimism and rampart cynicism about marriage and the
family. Consequently, it is very important for us, as a Christian community, to
affirm the value of the family and to do all we can to strengthen it. We must
safeguard it and use it as God intends it to be used. Morally, as individuals,
we are only as intact as our families. We have been allowing our families to
start disintegrating, perhaps without even realizing it.
We're very busy and, oftentimes,
it's about good things. But this does not relieve us of the responsibility to
take the time to be a family. There are mothers and fathers who are physically
there all the time but who are not really there at all. It is a certain quality
of caring and of being involved that must be present in order to sustain the
family when the inevitable problems and crises come.
In the Responsorial Psalm, we
acclaim, "For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork; blessed shall you
be, and favored" (cf. Ps 128:2). I remember growing up and eating dinner
as a family. It was, and still is, a grace to be together for a meal; to sit at
the table with my family and friends, to share in the common fruit of our own
labors, to feel like a family and talk and comment on the events of the day
with the informal intimacy of a happy group. It is a blessing to have meals
together. It may be that the common dining room unites us as much as the common
chapel does.
Raphael's painting, "The
Holy Family," has a way of propelling us right back into the Gospel where
we find that Jesus, Mary and Joseph are not living in a plastic, superficial
family situation. Rather, we see them in all the realism, all the humanity, all
the pressure, as well as all the joys of family life, including time to share a
meal together.
As a Christian community, it
is critically important for us to affirm, in every way possible, the value of
marriage and family as God's great gifts. But this is not the only way God's
grace works. Sometimes God finds other ways. There are people who live alone.
There are people who have not had immediate family for years. Consequently, as
Christians, not only do we affirm the value of our immediate family, but we
also affirm the value of the Church-as-family. When you say "Yes" to
Jesus you are brought into a "family", and never again are you alone
in the way you were before. Never! We feel one another's hurts. We feel one
another's joys. We are fully present to one another. You are loved! You do have
a family! Your family is here, at this common table that we share.
Christmas is here to remind
us that the Light of Christ has come into the world! Love is born and life is
possible because we feel protected, not like a wall or a suit of armor, but in
Henri Nouwen's words, "more like a hand on my shoulder, a kiss on my
forehead, or smiling eyes looking at me."