On May 2nd, 2015, a royal daughter was born to Prince William and Duchess Kate. News of Charlotte Elizabeth Diana quickly spread throughout the world. Her official name is Her Royal Highness Princess Charlotte of Cambridge. She is fourth in line to the throne of England. The London sky lit up the night of her birth.
On this feast of the Holy Family, we remember that we are more than royal children. We are not sons and daughters of earthly monarchs. Instead, we are children and heirs of the King of kings. In the first Letter of St. John, he states that "we are God's children, now." (1 John 3:1) This is not just fancy rhetoric. It is fact! Let's take a moment to think about this!
One time, Jesus told his disciples, "My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and act on it." (Luke 8:19-21). In the reading from the First Letter of John, God tells us what he wants: to believe in Jesus Christ and to love one another. The payoff is that we remain in God, and he in us. It is like a drop of water in the ocean. It is not the ocean. However, it is part of the ocean, the ocean is part of it. Further, Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit to remain in us to connect us to him and the Father.
What we are learning today on this Feast of the Holy Family is that Jesus has three families. His first family is the Trinity. It is a mysterious love triangle of Father, Son, and Spirit. Their love gave birth to all creation. Their love eventually brought forth Jesus (divine and human) to show us how to live.
His second family was his earthly family, the Holy Family of Joseph, Mary, and Jesus. We celebrate that family today. That family models for us devotion, respect, and obedience to God - despite many trials.
We hear of Joseph obediently taking Mary as his wife and raises Jesus as his son. Scripture uses only one adjective to describe Joseph: just. However, we see in his actions unselfish devotion to his family and to his God.
Next we hear that Mary never said no to God, regardless of the cost. When the angel Gabriel told her that she was to be the mother of the Messiah, she responds, "Be it done to me according to your word." (Luke 1:38) She was faithful from the annunciation to the manger to the cross to the grave.
It was in this family that Jesus, as a human like us, grew in age, wisdom, and grace. Though God, he respected his earthly parents. We owe that respect to our parents just because they are our parents. Sirach says that this respect comes through their life.
Finally, we are Jesus' adopted family. God gave all of us into Jesus' care. He calls us brothers and sisters. He modeled obedience to God the Father, no matter the cost. He taught us how to be children of God and children of our earthly parents. We are drawn into the Holy Family because he gave us Mary, his Mother, to be our mother, too.
If your family is not holy, if they have rejected you, if you feel rootless, unloved, unaccepted, remember that nothing can separate you from your relationship with God except yourself. Even then, God's door is always open to welcome us back into the family to share a meal.
Each week as we gather for the Eucharist, we assemble as children of God united as his Holy Family. We come to strengthen our families, both spiritual and earthly, through sharing the Scriptures and in the Eucharist. Truly, Communion makes present our life in Christ and his life in us. Go forth living as a royal child of the King of kings.
Very good insight, viewing JESUS as having 3 families: (1) the Trinity, (2)his earthly parents, Mary & Joseph, and (3)all of us, His adopted family.
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