___________________________
If you want to know what a family truly is, don’t look at a picture frame — look at a suitcase.
A family is revealed not when everything
is neatly arranged, but when you are forced to pack quickly, leave behind all
the things you love, and trust God on the road ahead.
That is where today’s Gospel places the
Holy Family — not in a quiet living room with soft light, but fleeing into
Egypt in the dark of night.
(Tonight/Today) we celebrate the Feast
of the Holy Family — Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.
And it is tempting to turn them into a
stained-glass ideal: calm, perfectly ordered, untouched by fear or conflict.
But the Word of God refuses to let us romanticize them.
Instead, Scripture shows us a family
under pressure.
Herod wants the Child dead. Joseph has
dreams not of peace but of warning. Mary carries in her arms the Savior of the
world while crossing borders as a refugee. Jesus begins his life NOT in safety,
but in exile.
The Holy Family is holy NOT because life
was easy, but because love endured.
First, Sirach reminds us that Holiness
Begins at Home.
The first reading from Sirach grounds
holiness in ordinary family relationships — especially honoring parents:
“Whoever honors his father atones for
sins… Whoever reveres his mother stores up riches.”
This is not sentimental advice. Sirach
speaks honestly about aging, weakness, and patience:
“Even if his mind fails, be considerate
of him; revile him not in the fullness of your strength.”
In other words, love is proven when it
costs something.
Family life is where we learn our first
language of love — or our first language of wounds.
And Sirach reminds us that reverence
within the family is not optional; it is sacred work. How we treat one another
at home shapes how we understand God Himself.
The Holy Family lived this reverence
daily. Jesus, though Son of the Most High, obeyed Mary and Joseph. God placed
Himself under human authority. That alone should stop us in our tracks.
Second, Colossians introduces us to The
Clothing of Christian Families.
St. Paul, in Colossians, tells us what
the Christian household should wear:
“Put on compassion, kindness, humility,
gentleness, and patience.”
Notice: these are not feelings. They are
choices. Clothing is something you deliberately put on each day.
Paul knows that family life can strip us
bare — expose our selfishness, our tempers, our impatience. So, he tells us to
dress differently:
“Bear with one another and forgive one
another… and over all these put on love.”
The Holy Family did not survive fear,
displacement, and uncertainty by perfect communication or flawless planning.
They survived because love governed their decisions — and because the peace of
Christ ruled their hearts.
And Paul gives us the key to unity:
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you
richly.”
Not scrolling endlessly. Not noise
without rest. But the Word — spoken, prayed, sung, lived.
Lastly, the Gospel shows us Holiness on
the Run.
Matthew’s Gospel today is striking for
what it doesn’t include. No words from Mary. No dialogue from Jesus.
Only Joseph acting — quietly, obediently, decisively.
Joseph dreams, listens, and moves.
He does not argue with God. He does not
ask for guarantees. He protects his family by trusting God more than his own
comfort.
This is holiness in action.
The Holy Family shows us that God’s Will
does not always lead us into predictability, but it always leads us into life.
Egypt, Nazareth, uncertainty — none of it is wasted. God is forming His Son in
the midst of family life, hardship, and hiddenness.
And here is the quiet miracle: salvation
grows in ordinary faithfulness.
So, What Does This Means for Us?
The Feast of the Holy Family is not
meant to make us feel inadequate. It is meant to remind us that holiness is
possible right where we are:
- In
imperfect marriages
- In
strained parent-child relationships
- In
grief, illness, distance, and disappointment
Your family does not have to be flawless
to be faithful. Like the Holy Family, your home can be a place where:
- Forgiveness
is practiced more than blame
- Prayer
is imperfect but sincere
- Love
shows up even when it is tired
God does not wait for ideal conditions.
He is born into real families.
And our real families are where our
holiness comes from.
I remember struggling during formation
to become a deacon.
The question I asked of God over and
over again in prayer, “Is this where you are really calling me to serve?” So
many other classmates are much holier than me.
The answer came in my final year before
ordination.
In the fall of 2011, I sat at the
bedside of my dying mother-in-law, in the final hour of her life, praying the
Prayers for the Dying with her. Her end came suddenly, and I was the only person
with her that day.
As she died, I realized it was the first
time I had personally witnessed death. The day was October 4th,
feast day of St. Francis of Assisi, one of my favorite deacons in the Church.
In that moment, I realized that the
first time I had witness a life being born was our first son, born on the feast
day of one of the first seven deacons and the first Christian martyr, St.
Stephen, on December 26th. Our son turned 35 on Friday.
From my own holy family, came an answer
from God, I was to be a deacon. It was the will of the Father. (PAUSE)
And remember the suitcase?
Holiness is not framed on the wall — it
is carried on the journey. It is found in patience learned over time,
forgiveness chosen again and again and again, and trust that God is present
even when the road turns unexpectedly.
Today we ask the Holy Family NOT to make
our families perfect — but to make them faithful.
Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, pray for us and
our families.
