The Feast of the Holy Family

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family which celebrates both the human family and the family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. The feast, not a solemnity, is usually celebrated on the Sunday after Christmas but since Christmas was celebrated on a Sunday this year it was moved to December 30th. The Feast of the Holy Family is not just about the Holy Family, but about our own families too. The main purpose of the Feast is to present the Holy Family as the model for all Christian families. 

St. Paul gives us some advice on family life in Colossians 3:12 – 17:

“Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, and patience, forbearing one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teach and admonish one another in all wisdom, and sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. “

The Feast of the Holy Family is a good time for us to remember our own families and to reflect on all that Joseph and Mary did for Jesus.  How did they show their love?  How did Jesus grow by their example?  As we take time this day to be thankful for our own families let us remember with love and faith all the good things that we have learned along the way.  May we always have the gift of gratitude in our hearts.  

Pat Schifini, OSU