On Christmas Day we celebrated the remarkable mystery of God becoming one of us. God wanted to show the great love that God has for us, and so putting aside the glory of divine transcendence God became one of us as a poor, defenceless child. God knew that people might be frightened by God’s divine life and power but God also knew how people are attracted to a child. I am always amazed at how children are attracted to other children. God wanted us to understand the love God has for us and wanted us to draw as near to God as we dared without fear.
But there is also another aspect of this mystery. By taking on our flesh God redeemed all of creation; God made all of creation holy and invited us to share in the Divine Life itself. In every Mass when the priest pours some water into the wine at the Offertory he prays: By the mystery of this water and wine may we come to share in the divinity of Christ who humbled himself to share in our humanity. This was the “good news” that the apostles preached after the Resurrection. We all are brothers and sisters in Christ. We share in God’s life. Paul had no problem calling the Christians “saints”.
Today’s Feast of the Holy Family adds another dimension to this remarkable mystery. God not only shared in our humanity by becoming a child but also by becoming a member of a family. In this way God made family life itself holy. Mary and Joseph were not made holy by their natural goodness; it was God’s presence in their life that made them holy. In the Gospels we can read how they were willing to say “yes” to God’s offer of participating in God’s life and activity and so we can call them the “Holy Family”. The Gospels also reveal that God makes the offer of holiness to every family; it is up to each family to say “yes” or “no” to God’s offer.
To say “yes” and to live out God’s holiness in our family life does not mean that everything will go “well” in our daily living. When Mary and Joseph said “yes” to God they did not know what to expect. They heard phrases that every Jew would have loved to hear about sitting on David’s throne and ruling a Kingdom that would last forever. But they had no idea how this would turn out for them and their son. They never would have expected to have to become refugees in a foreign country. They might have had some “great plans” for Jesus. But because they loved one another unconditionally and wanted to care for Jesus in the best possible way they willingly became refugees in Egypt for a period of time and they were content to settle in the small village of Nazareth in the remote province of Galilee. There Joseph taught Jesus to become a carpenter. They lived a devout life and brought Jesus up to be a pious Jew. But most importantly they loved one another unconditionally and in this way they shared in the life of God. A profound mystery!
Today’s feast reminds us of the great gift that God gave us of being part of a family where we might not only find unconditional love for one another but also where we can share in God’s love for us by letting us share in God’s divine and eternal life. For we too are members of a Holy Family.