People as Gifts; Not as Possessions

Feast of the Holy Family



Today's readings draw us to the importance of family life and the sacrificial love that parents have for their children. AND the sacrificial love that God has for US.

In the reading from the first Book of Samuel, we see how thankful Hannah is to God. She had begged the Lord for a child and the Lord had heard her plea and Samuel was born. Because Hannah was grateful for the gift of her child, she decided to give this child back to God, saying: "I prayed for this child, and the Lord granted my request. Now I, in turn, give him to the Lord; as long as he lives, he shall be dedicated to the Lord." This was surely a sacrificial action backed by love on her part.

We see this same love exhibited by Mary and Joseph as they realized their son was not with their relatives or acquaintances as they travelled back home to Nazareth after spending Passover in Jerusalem. How anguished they must have felt as they returned to Jerusalem to search for Jesus. How grateful they must have felt on finding Him in the Temple.

Jesus, being a typical twelve year old, had wanted to do things on His own... He must have felt the pull of the Temple; His Father's house. He seemed surprised that He had caused His parents anguish. "Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?"

But Jesus shows us the obedience and respect one must have for one's parents; when as a responsible child, "He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them."

As mothers everywhere do, when unusual or heartrending events happen to their children, "...his mother kept all these things in her heart."

Saint John reminds us that because of God's love for us, Jesus was sent to live among us as one of us - thus He was born into a family. And by that incarnation, we have now been adopted as children of God.

As children of God, we are now to be responsible for each other: to love one another as He has commanded us.

This commandment to love is especially important in family life. We family members, whether parents or children, are responsible for and to each other. We must learn to regard our life together as a gift from God; not as one member possessing another.

Support for family life comes to us from the Church which nourishes the family through the Word and the Sacraments with the strength its members need to continue to live in God's love.