The “Holy Family” is the designation given to the family unit of Jesus Christ. It is comprised of Jesus Christ – The Divine Son of God, The Virgin Mary – the Mother of Christ, and Jesus’ Earthly “Adoptive” father, Joseph. The canonical Gospels do not speak much of the Holy Family, just primarily the birth of Jesus, the flight into Egypt, and when Mary and Joseph find Jesus in the Temple. While the precise facts of the day-to-day life of the Holy Family might be shrouded in mystery, we can still absorb a lot from the stories we do have. Devotion to the Holy Family is a more current development. The love of Jesus and his Family is something that grows naturally.
The Feast of the Holy Family became really popular in the 17th century, where several religious organizations were founded under this label. It was also depicted in art works during this time. On October 26th, 1921 the Congregation of Rites led by Pope Benedict the 15th, introduced the Feast of the Holy Family into the Latin Rite common calendar. Before that time it was observed provincially. Popes before Benedict the 15th such as Leo the 13th sponsored the feast as a way to counter the dissolution of the family unit. The church today observes the Feast on the Sunday between Christmas and New Year’s Day. Before 1969, the Feast was held on the first Sunday following the Epiphany.
In our Reading today from Hebrews 2:10-18, the writer of Hebrews is stating that in bringing children to glory will make their development of redemption perfect through suffering; that the one who consecrates and those who are sanctified all have one unifying Father and because of this, Jesus is not ashamed to call us all brothers and sisters. He states, “I will declare your name to my brothers and sisters, in the center of the churchgoers I will praise you.” And also, “I will put my trust in him.” And “Here am I and the offspring whom God has given me.” Since, then, the children share flesh and blood, he himself similarly shared the same things, so that through death he might end the one who has the control of death, that is, the devil, and permit those who all their lives were seized in bondage by the fear of death. For it is clear that he did not come to aid angels, but the children of Abraham. So he had to become like his brothers and sisters in every aspect, so that he might be a compassionate and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make a sacrifice of compensation for the sins of the people. As he himself was tried by what he suffered, he is able to aid those who are being tried and tested.
And in Matthew 2:13-23, the adoptive father of Jesus, Joseph is given a remarkable vision in a dream by the angel of the Lord and is telling Joseph to take the baby Jesus and his mother Mary into Egypt, because King Herod is seeking the boy to kill him. They all travel by night into Egypt. There they remained until Herod died and was so fulfilled by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I have called my son.” Herod was tricked by the wise men and in his anger; killed all the children in the proximity of Bethlehem who were two years old or under, thus fulfilling what the prophet Jeremiah spoke: “A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled, because they are no more.” After the death of Herod, the angel again visited Joseph in a dream and told him to take Jesus and his mother Mary back to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking to kill the boy are now dead. After Joseph learned that Archelaus was now ruler of Judea in Herod’s place, he felt great fear, and after being advised in a dream, he went to a district of Galilee. He made their home in Nazareth, so that the words of the prophets would be fulfilled, “He will be called a Nazarene.”
Sometimes family can be a really daunting thing. We may not all get along well with our family; brothers and sisters have disagreements, perhaps you may have grown up in a family of all brothers or all sisters. We may not all work like a well-oiled machine. Sometimes Mothers and Fathers go through seasons where they do not mesh effectively. Maybe you grew up in a unit that was not like a “typical” family. Each person may be going through something that could make connections a bit difficult. Parents could be struggling at work, with work, children dealing with their own struggles in school with friends or teachers or homework. One thing to remember during this holiday season is that our differences really aren’t that different. It’s not that difficult to relate to something a parent faces as much as it is observing a child in their day to day life.
When we think about the hardships of the Holy Family, how Mary and Joseph struggled in their travels from Nazareth to Bethlehem, or going into Egypt by night, it’s not really much different than what most families go through either once or many times. If a parent gets a new job and the entire family has to relocate, that means new schools for the children. One thing that weighed heavily on the Holy Family was that the entire journeys were done on foot, even atop a donkey is not much easier. Joseph had a great responsibility to protect this child, the baby Jesus, and his wife, Mary. Just imagine what it must have been to have known that there were people out there seeking this child’s life! And for Mary, a woman of whom had just given birth, keeping on the move for miles and miles.
During this time of the year, when you are spending time with your family, think of your family, think of the sacrifices your parents or guardians made to help get you where you are in life. As a parent or guardian, take time to reflect on the children that you have raised, to the great kids that they are or fantastic adults that they have become. Give thanks for each other during this time of year and be open with one another. If your family is not one to spend a lot of time together, give them a call, send them an e-mail, break open the fog of silence and start communicating. Family is an integral part to the community aspect of being a Dominican. So, work past your differences, and forgive often! Spend time with friends, rejoice with them through all the good times, and be with them during the hard times. Spend quality family time during this time of meals and merriment. It really is a season of growing together as a family. Amen.

Today the Church celebrates the feast of St. John the Evangelist, the “Beloved Disciple,” who is traditionally believed to be the author of the Gospel of John. John was a historical figure, one of the “pillars” of the church in Jerusalem following Jesus’ death and resurrection. Around 95 AD, he is believed to have been exiled to the island of Patmos, where he wrote the book of Revelation and taught various believers who came to visit him in exile. He is the only one of the original 12 apostles to not have been killed for his faith and died in old age around the year 100 AD. Depicted in art as a young man, John is also represented by an eagle, which is one of the figures envisioned by the prophet Ezekiel and in John’s Revelation.

Have you ever gone on a long trip or ever moved away from your dear family and friends, and desired so much to be with them, to spend time with them, to talk to them and enjoy their company? Oftentimes, we pick up the phone and we can hear the voices of our loved ones. We in our modern world use video chat services like FaceTime and Skype to see and interact with them on a deeper level. That, however, is very rarely enough to satisfy our desire to be with one another, to learn from our elders and relatives and to laugh and be silly with our friends. Being with them gives an added sense of love and friendship and guidance and comfort that indirect means of communication cannot do.

In our first reading for this great feast, we read John’s own words discussing what he had the immense blessing in his life to experience with regard to the message of the Gospel. John, as one of the original 12 apostles, got to walk with Jesus, hear the message of the Good News of salvation from His mouth, see the miracles He worked, and even see the salvation of the world as his Teacher, his Master, hung dying on the cross with the weight of the world’s sins past, present, and future, on his shoulders. John says that what he does in preaching the Gospel is because of “what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life” (1John 1:1). John was in a very special place to witness these miracles, as Scripture calls him “the beloved disciple,” “the disciple whom Jesus loved,” and he is the one to whom Jesus gave his mother to be taken care of. In preaching the Good News of salvation, and in his writings to the Christians who came to hear him, he is preaching what he himself has personally witnessed and is passing on to the readers of his letter, even down to us today. How truly blessed was he who touched the feet which bore the wounds which brought us salvation! How truly blessed to experience the miracles, the healings, and the walking on the water. How truly blessed to preach from his own experience that Jesus is Lord.

Sometimes in our Christian journey, it feels like we have to connect to the Lord through indirect means, like we would be connected with one another through FaceTime or Skype, or even the phone. Because we can’t physically touch Jesus, physically hear His voice as He speaks words of grace, of healing, of miracle, we may feel disconnected from Him and the work that He does in the world. We sometimes can feel like our prayer isn’t getting through and that we aren’t having the relationship with Jesus that we so desperately feel called to have. While it may feel that we can only connect to Him through indirect means we too, like John, can have those direct experiences with the mercy and grace and goodness of God. While in our life’s journey we become distracted, we should take a breath and look around and see the blessings, the graces, and the miracles that our Lord is working around us each and every day. Look at the beauty of the created world and the blessing of faith, and like John, share it. Like John, let us proclaim Jesus Christ, for “this life was revealed, and we have seen it and testify to it, and declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us” (1John 1:2). We don’t need technology to feel connected to the Lord. We need only look around us, listen for His voice, and share His goodness and love, and the Good News of salvation.

St. John the Evangelist, the Beloved Disciple, pray for us.

Having a full plate.  Too much on your plate.  Just what does this idiom mean?  Imagine a plate of food so full that some food might fall off.  We don’t have to imagine it;  we’ve all seen guy at the all you can eat buffets.  The idioms dealing with a “full plate” refer to the same kind of thing, except instead of food,  our imaginary plates are filled with anxiety, work, things to do, problems that need to be solved.  We have much on our plates and Joseph had much on his.  Let’s read the Gospel for today:
This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about.  When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph,  but before they lived together,  she was found with child through the Holy Spirit.
Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame,  decided to divorce her quietly.  Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,  “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.  For it is through the Holy Spirit  that this child has been conceived in her.  She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”  All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:  Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,  which means “God is with us.”  When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him  and took his wife into his home.
MT 1:18-24
Let’s look at what was placed on Joseph’s plate.
Joseph must have had huge doubts about Mary when she was found to be pregnant. Joseph and Mary had not lived together (consummated the marriage), so Joseph had every right to believe Mary had been unfaithful to him, until an Angel of the lord appeared to him in a dream. The angel spoke to Joseph, assuring him that Mary had not been unfaithful, rather she was carrying the Son of God.  What a trusting man Joseph must have been!  How would you react? Wouldn’t that seem a little too far-fetched to be believable? Wouldn’t you just think that a dream is a dream and nothing more? Joseph didn’t: he had faith that what he had been told by the Angel was fact. I would like to think that if placed in the same situation, I would be able to react with faith as Joseph did. But most likely I would still be skeptical of the validity of the whole situation.
What do we know about Joseph? Not much actually, other than he was betrothed to Mary, which means that his marriage to Mary had been arranged by his and her parents; it is believed my many theologians that he was young, probably 16 or 17. We know that he was a devout man, a carpenter by trade, and he was from Bethlehem, but lived in Nazareth. Not a lot of detail about the man who would raise Jesus to adulthood.

We know that he was “pledged to be married” to Mary.  What newer versions of the Bible call “pledged to be married,” the older versions call “betrothed.” This refers to an ancient Jewish marriage custom. In those days, most marriages were arranged by the parents–with or without the children’s approval. The two sets of parents would meet and draw up a formal marriage contract. When the contract was signed, the man and woman were legally “pledged” to each other other. This period of betrothal would last up to a year, at the end of which period they were formally married in a public wedding ceremony. Now that sounds like our practice of engagement, but there were some major differences. In the first place, the “pledge” was considered as sacred as marriage itself. During that year, the couple were called husband and wife but they did not live together. If the man died during that year, the woman would be considered a widow even though the wedding ceremony had never taken place. The only way to break the betrothal was through a legal divorce. In essence, to be “pledged” to each other was the same thing as being married, except that you could not live together until the wedding ceremony took place. The whole idea was that the one-year waiting period was meant to be a time for testing commitment and faithfulness.
Now Mary turns up pregnant. Joseph only knows one thing for sure. He’s not the father. What words describe a man at a time like this? Anger … Confusion … Frustration … Embarrassment … Shame … Rage … Disappointment. What did he say to her? What did she say to him? Did she tell him about the angel Gabriel? If she did, can you blame him for not believing her? Did he say to her, “Mary, how could you? You were pledged to me. We were going to get married. I think Joseph cried harder that day than he had ever cried in his life.
I shudder to think that if this situation happened today it might end in an abortion. Thankfully, Joseph and Mary didn’t have that option. Abortion was very rare in ancient Israel and Planned Parenthood hadn’t opened up a clinic in Nazareth yet. Joseph’s dilemma was of a different variety. He was an observant Jew and under the Law he had the right to divorce Mary for unfaithfulness. In fact, the Law forbade him to marry her under those circumstances. Here is the greatness of Joseph. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man (that means he wanted to do what was right in the eyes of God) and did not want to expose her to public disgrace (that means that he although he thought she had been unfaithful, he still didn’t want to humiliate her) , he had in mind to divorce her quietly. In those days, a man could get a divorce in two ways: First, he could get a public divorce by going before a judge at the gate of the city. That would mean that the whole town would know about Mary’s shame. Second, he could get a private divorce by giving her the papers in the presence of two witnesses. It is entirely to Joseph’s credit that he chose to do it privately and thus spare Mary the humiliation of a public divorce. Having made his decision … he didn’t do it. He had every legal and moral right to divorce Mary but he just couldn’t do it. He hesitated, waited, thought long and hard. Day after day he pondered the matter. Time was running out. With each passing day, it became more obvious that Mary was pregnant.
He had a dream and in the dream God spoke to him. An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.” To us, this seems strange. But not to Joseph. God often spoke to people through dreams in the Bible. It was one way he used in those ancient days of communicating to his people. He couldn’t marry Mary until he was sure it was all right. He had to know the truth. God met him at the point of his need at exactly the right moment. He told Joseph the one thing he most wanted to hear: “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife.” The angel explains just enough and nothing more. The baby is “from the Holy Spirit” and thus not of man. Nothing more is said. We are not told precisely how the virginal conception of Jesus in the womb of Mary took place. It remains one of the great mysteries of the Christian faith. After 2000 years of debate, we know nothing more about it than Joseph did.The angel added a detail about who this baby will be. His name is Jesus, which means “Savior.” His mission is to save his people from their sins.
We give more attention to Mary and rightly so. But Joseph deserves his credit, too. He is a model of the man of faith, struggling with his doubts, persuaded to believe what God has said and ultimately acting upon his persuasion.

In these days of confusion, Joseph is a wonderful model of what a godly man looks like:
He was tough when he could have been weak.
He was tender when he could have been harsh.
He was thoughtful when he could have been hasty.
He was trusting when he could have doubted.
He was temperate when he could have indulged himself.

Joseph had much on his plate.  And he accepted it and met it with faith.  What about you?  What’s on your plate?  How do you handle what life throws at you?

Let us pray:

Loving God, Help us to be more like Joseph, trusting, tender, thoughtful and temperate. Give us the strength to accept the situations before us and make the appropriate decisions for each situation. Amen.

I recently saw the movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life”, directed by Frank Capra; it debuted in the post-war period of 1947. Now, it’s aired primarily by the NBC network during the holiday season. For a black and white movie, a lot of the movie’s themes are still relative for the world today.

Meet George Bailey, a young man, who is also the son of a banker. George has so many hopes and dreams that he wants to accomplish in his life. Then, after his father dies, he is left with the family business, “The Bailey Building and Loan”, and comes to the realization that many of his most cherished dreams may not come to pass. George gets married and has a family.

Things take a “sour turn” halfway through the film, when Mr. Potter,  the film’s villain; makes a dishonest move against George’s uncle.

As a result of this, George is feeling miserable and hopeless. Enter the angel Clarence. George was willed with so much grief and despair that he has contemplated throwing his life away.

Clarence presents George with a remarkable gift; a life he has never lived.

If you were to take a step back and analyze your life to this date. Though it’s probably safe to assume that our life hasn’t been as dramatic as the fictional character of George Bailey, we do have a lot of power to affect positive change. So, how many lives have you affected?  How have you helped people? What have you been able to do to affect positive change? What things could you make better? How would your friends and family be different?

Going further, imagine, now, what the world would have been like if Christ had never come into it. Our world, would have remained a very dark place. The birth of Jesus was a changing point. The Son of God was a gift that was given to us by God the Father. And as such, we must be thankful for this gift and look at our lives as gifts as well. God saw how dark the world was becoming, but as much, he was able to see the darkness inside of people’s lives.

In John 3:16, St. John writes, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” That’s right, God loves the world and all of us so very much, that he bundled up and placed his “gift” in swaddling clothes and placed him in that manger in that cave. And he gave us an eternal “gift” to spend it with him.

And it is up to us as Christians to continue to be that ‘gift.’  We must remember that often, we are the only Jesus people will see.  We are the only Bible some people will read.  The holidays and Christmas time can be a somewhat depressing time for many people, and as Christians it is important for us to never lose hope or our faith, but to exhibit that faith on a grander scale.

As much as Clarence gave George some perspective on his life, and his accomplishments already, I urge you to not lose hope or your faith. If self-analysis grants you great conviction or satisfaction, please know that you can still change your life. Our life on this Earth is truly a most wonderful and gracious gift. So make it a great one! Amen.

I love to garden, but often get frustrated when the small seedlings I have planted in the ground, do not take root. What usually happens is maybe one or two plants will survive my clumsy gardening, while the rest wither and die. I usually leave the dying stumps in the ground, figuring they will help fertilize the new plants trying to grow. In the beginning of Isaiah 11, we are offered a picture of the future that reminds us of how new growth springs from a solid root.

“A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.”

This vision of the future offers us hope, with the upcoming birth of baby Jesus. And further goes on to describe just exactly how the Messiah will lead His people. Why does the Holy Spirit, who gave Isaiah these visions of the future, want you and me to see this? Because we need to understand what kind of king we find in the manger of Bethlehem.

“The spirit of the LORD shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. His delight shall be in the fear of the LORD. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear; but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist, and faithfulness the belt around his loins.’”

We recently had a presidential election in the United States. And though we know that only one person can win, that didn’t prevent some people from being upset when their favorite candidate didn’t win. Everyone can describe in detail why their candidate is the best person to lead this country. But I imagine, if they were honest with themselves, they could also tell you the faults of this or that person. This is because no one person is perfect. But the prophet Isaiah described the most perfect leader, not just of a country, but of all time. Not only does this offer us hope for the coming Messiah, but also serves as inspiration for those who have lost heart in their daily struggles. What once seemed dying, lost, gone ….. now offers hope. All is not lost! This new vision of the future, as detailed in Isaiah 11:6-10, offers us a glimpse of God’s promises for the future.

“The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze, their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder’s den. They will not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain; for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea. On that day the root of Jesse shall stand as a signal to the peoples; the nations shall inquire of him, and his dwelling shall be glorious.”

Paints a pretty picture, doesn’t it? I can here you mumbling though: “But, how will all this be possible?” We already know that God can work miracles. After all, who created all you see, touch, smell, hear? It certainly didn’t materialize out of thin air. So is it so hard to imagine a future where there will be no strife, no discord among animals and man? Oh, I know looking at the world today, that might be hard to understand and even harder to imagine. But Matthew 19:26 clearly states, “Jesus looked at them and said “With men this impossible, but with God all things are possible.”” So next time you find yourself losing heart, ready to give up, remember the One who created you, who decided you were worth something. All of us are special, worth saving, and it will take a little baby, a small child, to show us the way.