Honor Thy Father and Thy Mother

Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph
30 December 2018

First reading                                                                1 Samuel 1:20-22, 24-28
In those days Hannah conceived, and at the end of her term bore a son whom she called Samuel, since she had asked the LORD for him. The next time her husband Elkanah was going up with the rest of his household to offer the customary sacrifice to the LORD and to fulfill his vows, Hannah did not go, explaining to her husband, “Once the child is weaned, I will take him to appear before the LORD and to remain there forever; I will offer him as a perpetual nazirite.”
Once Samuel was weaned, Hannah brought him up with her, along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour, and a skin of wine, and presented him at the temple of the LORD in Shiloh. After the boy’s father had sacrificed the young bull, Hannah, his mother, approached Eli and said: “Pardon, my lord! As you live, my lord, I am the woman who stood near you here, praying to the LORD. I prayed for this child, and the LORD granted my request. Now I, in turn, give him to the LORD; as long as he lives, he shall be dedicated to the LORD.” Hannah left Samuel there.

Second reading                                                    Collosians 3:12-17

Brothers and sisters:
Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved,
heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience,
bearing with one another and forgiving one another,
if one has a grievance against another;
as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do.
And over all these put on love,
that is, the bond of perfection.
And let the peace of Christ control your hearts,
the peace into which you were also called in one body.
And be thankful.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly,
as in all wisdom you teach and admonish one another,
singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs
with gratitude in your hearts to God.
And whatever you do, in word or in deed,
do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Gospel                                                                      Luke 2:41-52

Each year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the feast
of Passover,
and when he was twelve years old,
they went up according to festival custom.
After they had completed its days, as they were returning,
the boy Jesus remained behind in Jerusalem,
but his parents did not know it.
Thinking that he was in the caravan,
they journeyed for a day
and looked for him among their relatives and acquaintances,
but not finding him,
they returned to Jerusalem to look for him.
After three days they found him in the temple,
sitting in the midst of the teachers,
listening to them and asking them questions,
and all who heard him were astounded
at his understanding and his answers.
When his parents saw him,
they were astonished,
and his mother said to him,
“Son, why have you done this to us?
Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety.”
And he said to them,
“Why were you looking for me?
Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”
But they did not understand what he said to them.
He went down with them and came to Nazareth,
and was obedient to them;
and his mother kept all these things in her heart.
And Jesus advanced in wisdom and age and favor
before God and man.

Reflection

By Fely Santiago

He went down with them and came to Nazareth and was obedient to them.

On this Feast of the Holy Family, I’d like to focus on the first and fourth commandments related to people, our “neighbor”. I believe this is the secret to a healthy family. Jesus demonstrated it Himself when He returned to His family after He was “lost” in the temple also doing the ‘WILL” of His Father in Heaven. Jesus is the model of obedience. In the gospel reading today He said “Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house? And He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them..” He was obedient to God the Father and to His foster parents here on earth Mama Mary and St Joseph.

  

Growing up, I also remembers the words of my Papa – Trust and Obey there’s no other way. I see my parents as the first representation of Jesus here on earth. They were the ones who first showed me God’s love. And I believe this is the reason why God asks us to honor them, and why it carries a great promise. The fourth commandment carries a promise – having a long life on earth. (Exodus 20:12). Thus we can see how important, serious, and rewarding this commandment is. I grow up in my spiritual life carrying these words and it has blessed me beyond my wildest imagination.

Today this is one of the biggest challenges in families. Parents do not teach this to their children so children do not understand and become rebellious. We should teach our children that honoring our parents is more than just physical respect. It starts from the inside. We should obey our parents even if sometimes we do not agree with them. That’s where communication comes in. Parents should also have healthy relationship with their children so they can guide them and mold them. Then the children can have a healthy relationship with the parents. Age, experience, and accomplishments do not give us permission to argue with our parents, thinking we know more, we are better persons than them or we are more updated. When God says we honor our parents, we just obey this commandment, period. This is also obedience to God our Father.

How is my relationship with my father and mother? Do I honor them? How do I show my love to them? What can I do today to show my love to them and obey them?

Prayer

Father God, Thank You for today. Thank You for reminding me how important it is to honor my parents. Lord, I know they are not perfect, and they don’t always act the way we would want them to, or they don’t always meet our expectations of “ideal” parents, but Lord, You gave them to me. Help me to always humble myself and show my respect and love for them, just as You did Your earthly parents. You used them mightily to take care of me and to show me and make me feel how much You love me, even if oftentimes I do not properly appreciate them. Lord, You know deep inside how much I love my parents. Help me to become more expressive of that love, and help me to love them back, and to honor them, no matter what. This is my prayer, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.
 

Life’s greatest privilege

Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph
December 29, 2013


May the peace of Christ reign in your hearts; let the message of Christ find a home with you.

   First Reading: Ecclesiasticus 3:2-6, 12-14

The       Lord honours the father in his children,

              and upholds the rights of a mother over her sons.

              Whoever respects his father is atoning for his sins,

              he who honours his mother is like someone amassing a fortune.

              Whoever respects his father will be happy with children of his own, he shall be heard on the     day when he prays.

              Long life comes to him who honours his father,

              he who sets his mother at ease is showing obedience to the Lord.

              My son, support your father in his old age,

              do not grieve him during his life.

              Even if his mind should fail, show him sympathy,

              do not despise him in your health and strength;

              for kindness to a father shall not be forgotten

              but will serve as reparation for your sins.

Psalm: Psalm 127

Second Reading: Collosians 3:12-21

You are God’s chosen race, his saints; he loves you, and you should be clothed in sincere compassion, in kindness and humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with one another; forgive each other as soon as a quarrel begins. The Lord has forgiven you; now you must do the same. Over all these clothes, to keep them together and complete them, put on love. And may the peace of Christ reign in your hearts, because it is for this that you were called together as parts of one body. Always be thankful.
  Let the message of Christ, in all its richness, find a home with you. Teach each other, and advise each other, in all wisdom. With gratitude in your hearts sing psalms and hymns and inspired songs to God; and never say or do anything except in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
  Wives, give way to your husbands, as you should in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and treat them with gentleness. Children, be obedient to your parents always, because that is what will please the Lord. Parents, never drive your children to resentment or you will make them feel frustrated.

Gospel: Matthew 2:13-15, 19-23

After the wise men had left, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother with you, and escape into Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, because Herod intends to search for the child and do away with him.’ So Joseph got up and, taking the child and his mother with him, left that night for Egypt, where he stayed until Herod was dead. This was to fulfil what the Lord had spoken through the prophet:

I called my son out of Egypt.

After Herod’s death, the angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother with you and go back to the land of Israel, for those who wanted to kill the child are dead.’ So Joseph got up and, taking the child and his mother with him, went back to the land of Israel. But when he learnt that Archelaus had succeeded his father Herod as ruler of Judaea he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream he left for the region of Galilee. There he settled in a town called Nazareth. In this way the words spoken through the prophets were to be fulfilled:

‘He will be called a Nazarene.’

Reflection
By  Bernard Borja

God spoke to Joseph again through an angel in a dream. He warned Joseph of what adversity that His family will face. If Joseph trusted his own understanding and pursued his own desires, ever since the angel first appeared to him, he would have massively failed for not letting God work through His life. God wants us to trust and obey Him because He always knows better than us. In a family, our parents serve as angels who relay God’s message to us.

God commanded us to honor our parents because one of His ways in sending miracles is through our mother and father. The first miracle performed by Jesus in the wedding in Cana begun by honoring His mother (John 2:3-5). In fact, Jesus lived in obedience to His parents during His younger years as He grew both in body and in wisdom, gaining favor with God and people (Luke 2:51-52). Family is about trusting each other and being obedient to our parents through God’s work.

We celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family the Sunday after Christmas, a time when many families have come together for the holidays. Like most families, we want to grow the emotional bond between each member. But there are times when this bond is tested during struggles. Like Joseph, Mary, and Jesus, they too have experienced a great adversity when the family had to flee to different places because of the people who wanted to take the child’s life. They had to endure this kind of difficulty for the sake of protecting our savior. But this hardship made them stronger as a family and grew stronger in faith. In similar situations, the hardships of most families today can either break them or make them stronger. We have seen families endure a long distance bond just to provide better because of hardship in finances. There are also families who had to endure an uncertain period of time for them to be together again in another country. OFWs and their families had to endure a deep sadness especially during the Christmas season. Like the Holy Family, we must look at these struggles as part of God’s work through our life for a greater purpose.

One of life’s greatest privileges is being part of a family where God works on His ways for a purpose that benefits all. In our example, OFWs help not just their families, but also the growth of our economy. God has always been building a family who will love Him, honor Him, and reign with Him forever, ever since the story of Creation in the Bible. Today, we receive one of the miracles of God’s work through our family as inspired by the life of Joseph, Mary, and Jesus. May the Holy Family become a great example of letting God use us for His purpose and working together for His glory.

Prayer

God, our Father, we thank You for giving us the privilege of being part of Your family. We pray for the families who are enduring hardships and struggles as they work together for the benefit of the most. May we realize that the hardships we encounter are for a greater purpose and for Your greater glory.

In Jesus name we pray, AMEN.