The Holy Family, Our Family!

Feast of the Holy Family Luke 2, 22-35 When the days were completed for their purification according to the law of Moses, the parents of Jesus took him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, just as it is written in the law of the Lord, Every male that opens the womb shall be consecrated to the Lord, and to offer the sacrifice of a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons, in accordance with the dictate in the law of the Lord. Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, awaiting the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Christ of the Lord. He came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to perform the custom of the law in regard to him, he took him into his arms and blessed God, saying: "Lord, now let your servant go in peace; your word has been fulfilled: my own eyes have seen the salvation which you prepared in the sight of every people, a light to reveal you to the nations and the glory of your people Israel." The child's father and mother were amazed at what was said about him; and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, "Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted (and you yourself a sword will pierce)so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed." Today we celebrate the feast of the Holy Family. That perfect family of Mary, Joseph and Jesus. A family not very much like mine, a family very much like mine. A family not very much like yours, a family very much like yours. I think it is perfect we celebrate the feast of the Holy Family today, right in the middle of the Christmas season. Because now is a time when many families are together. When I was young Christmas was a time for our family to get together. My older brothers and sisters who were married and who had moved away would come to visit. I would be able to come from the seminary to spend time with my parents and brothers and sisters. So today I naturally think about my family, and I would invite you to think about yours. One thing, that I suppose is obvious, is that everyone in my family speaks English. My parents spoke English as do all my brothers and sisters. I think that it is great that our young people like Joseph and Marz speak English, but I would guess that your parents all spoke Spanish as do all your brothers and sisters. When my family gathers, we all speak English together, and I would imagine that your families most of them speak Spanish together. In July one of my nieces had a baby, Alaina, the newest member of the family. She just celebrated her first Christmas with her mom and dad, grandparents and the many Aunts and Uncles. Since she is only 5 months old, I don’t think that she talks very much. She makes noises but nothing that is understandable. I don’t think that you could say she speaks Spanish or English. Next Christmas, when she is 17 months old I think that she will be talking quite a bit. Guess what language she will be talking? ENGLISH! Of course, and why will she speak English? Because that is the language that her mom and dad speak. It is the language that she is already learning because she hears it all the time. Jesus spoke Aramaic, why? Because that is the language that Mary and Joseph spoke. That was the language that he heard all the time as he was growing up. When his mother wanted him to come, she said “come” in Aramaic. That is how he learned it. When Joseph said no, he said it in Aramaic. When Jesus first began to preach the kingdom, he preached in Aramaic because it was his language, and it was the language of the people. So, my question is, what language are we teaching our children? What language do we speak in our homes? And I am not speaking of the English or Spanish or Aramaic. Like I said no family is perfect, we are not from the HOLY FAMILY but if we want our families to be places of love, families of service and kindness and solidarity we must “speak” that language in our homes. We need to be people of kindness and love and solidarity. Today we celebrate the feast of the Holy Family, our desire is that our families be places of faith. Our children need to hear not only Spanish and English to learn it, but they must also hear the Gospel to begin to live it. Children obviously learn to speak the language that they hear. We obviously we speak the language of the Gospel if we learn to speak it in our homes as well. Today we celebrate the feast of the Holy Family. Not just Mary, Joseph and Jesus in Nazareth; but all of our families as well.