Today, the Sunday within the Octave of Christmas, we celebrate the feast of the Holy Family. In our gospel for today I can fully understand the anxiety and worry of Mary and Joseph over not finding the child Jesus amongst their friends and family upon returning home from the celebration of Passover. As a parent I have had that worry many times over my children whenever they were sick, or if they were going through a problem that seemed to be difficult to resolve. Parents also know full well that worry for their children never stops, even when the children are grown and are adults.
Further, I can understand their relief upon finding Jessus back at the temple and asking that question, “Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety.” (Luke 2:48) Most parents have asked their children similar questions due to the worry of the parents over whatever issue may have been happening. The Lord answered with something that confused Mary and Joseph: "Did you not know that I mut be in my Father's house?"(Luke 2:49)) Jesus would then return home with them and was obedient to them.
As I was praying the Office of Readings this morning, the 2nd reading was from Pope Paul VI. A few quotes that stood out for me are: "Nazareth is a kind of school where we may begin to discover what Christ's life was like and even to understand the Gospel" and "How I would like to return to my childhood and attend the simple yet profound school that is Nazareth! How wonderful to be close to Mary, learning again the lessen of the true meaning of life, learning again God's truth." But the one that stood out most for me was, "First, we learn from its silence. If only we could again appreciate its great value. We need this wonderful state of mind, beset as we are by the cacophony of strident protests and conflicting claims so characteristic of these turbulent times. The silence of Nazareth should teach us to meditate in peace and quiet, to reflect on the deeply spiritual, and to be open to God's inner wisdom..." Times haven't changed much since these words of Pope Paul VI were written. We're in a world that is noisy and distracting and is constantly taking our attention away from our focus on God and the true meaning of who we are as a People of God. It's important to make that quiet time to be alone with God and to attempt to live out a life of peace and obedience to God.
I know for myself, one of my new year's resolutions is to make more quiet time in order pray and meditate on God's Word in scripture and to attempt to hear what he is His calling me to do in this world full of "noise" and "distractions". I invite everyone to do the same, and maybe we can make this world more of a place that is centered on Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ, and thus have a more peaceful and joyful world.
YES, I am sure the example of the anxiety that Our Lady & St. Joseph experienced when JESUS was missing is something to which all parents can relate. It shows their humanity. Although Our Lady was sinless, she was a human mother & one can only imagine the worry & weight of responsibility she must have felt when her Son was missing & that Son was also the Son of GOD entrusted into her care!
ReplyDeleteI am not a parent, but I definitely know how much my Mom worried about me, even though I was not prone to get into trouble. In the last few years of her life when I was her part time caregiver as well as working as an itinerant speech/language therapist & driving from place to place, I frequently checked in with Mom & her devoted aide, Mary, to let her know where I was & what time I would be home. If it was taking me a few minutes longer because I had traffic or had difficulty finding parking, Mom would start to worry. And Mom was a very prayerful woman, obedient & devoted to the LORD. She worried about me even in those days when she was 89 years old & I was 65 years old! So a mother's concern & a father's concern for their children definitely remain for the rest of their earthly lives.
Hopefully my Mom & Dad are watching over me from heaven & interceding for me but are totally free of worry & anxiety & totally at peace in the Presence of the LORD.