Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph
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Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics)
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"Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?" (Lk 2:41-52)
The quote above from Luke's Gospel differs significantly from the other gospel readings. All four gospel writers who introduced Jesus in their stories have different perspectives. For example, Jesus's first discussion in Matthew's Gospel is with John the Baptist on the importance of baptism. Notice that the parents do not consent to this being an okay thing to do. In Mark's Gospel, Jesus talks to strangers, trying to form a gang of disciples to be fishers of men. Indeed, this is very ambitious of the young Jesus. John's Gospel is complicated; people follow Jesus, and He asks this weird question: "Why are you following me?" And one must ask why Jesus is conversing with Mary in Luke's Gospel.
The Gospel of Luke provides a brief account of Jesus' early development, unlike the other Gospels, which depict him as an adult. Jesus appears young and perhaps brash. This is evident in his interaction with Mary, who was concerned after not seeing Him for three days. One may ask, "Who is the parent?" Luke offers three key points to aid in evangelizing our families.
If you have a family member hurting or troubled by today's political activities, invite them to church. I am sure this may cause some challenges; inviting people to church is often daunting. Do it anyway; they may rejoice as David did in the Psalms, "I rejoiced when they said to me, "Let us go to the house of the LORD" (Ps. 121:1). Believe it or not, there are still thousands of people in this world who have never visited a church. We can all do a better job of inviting friends and family to church. We must invest in our families’ and friends' spiritual well-being; this was a yearly occurrence for the Holy Family: Mary, Joseph, and Jesus.
Another essential aspect to note here is that as parents, we must raise our children around people in our church. Don't miss this: The scriptures say that "Each year Jesus' parents went to Jerusalem for the feast of Passover" (Lk. 2:41). In other words, Jesus was familiar with his surroundings. Jesus, perhaps, knew all the hiding places in the temple; he knew where the incense, candle holders, and other sacred items were. I imagined that Jesus may have leaned against the temple walls to hear the elders on several occasions as a lad before His parents called him to return to the family. The point is that a young boy of twelve years of age was comfortable around the elders because he had watched them for a long time.
Finally, this remark by Jesus is interesting, "Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?" Luke narrates that the parents did not understand that Jesus was doing work in His Father's house. On the other hand, I believe that Mary used her mother's insight, as Luke indicated at the end of this gospel reading: "His mother kept all these things in her heart." Isn't that what mothers do? They keep every thought and action of their children in their hearts. I can picture Mary thinking back to when she encountered Gabriel, the Angel, and noticed the first time Jesus took notice of the elders. This thought caused me to ponder. What part did Jesus' parents understand?
As I pondered this gospel, I believe we should give Jesus' parents a little credit for knowing something about raising a family, even if it contains Jesus. They ensured that Jesus was present for the Feast of the Passover for twelve years, giving him space to hear the elders. The real deal is that Mary may not have understood what Jesus was doing, but she knew that God blessed her to give birth to the Savior of the World.
As parents, we may not understand all of our children's actions, but one thing is sure: We know we are blessed to call them our own. Be thankful for the family members you have. Be a Holy Family by intentionally hugging a family member nearby or, as Stevie Wonder says, "I just called to say that I love you and mean it from the bottom of my heart."
Thank you for engaging with this blog. Should you find the content enriching, consider subscribing to Eat the Scroll Ministry for updates on our newest blog posts. Feel free to like and share this blog with someone you know. Evangelist/Professor Howard
Author: Evang./Prof. Michael Howard, MACS
Facilitator, University of Dayton, VLCFF,
University of Notre Dame, McGrath Institute, STEP Online,
Lead Faculty and Course Designer "The Presence of Black Catholics in the Church Today and Tomorrow" Loyola Marymount University,
Founder of Eat the Scroll Ministry
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