Daily reflection _ family life in the Lord

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.
Deacon John Ruscheinsky
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."