MONDAY HOMILY: The Family of Jesus

12/18/2012

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are converts, our parents brought us to the waters of Baptism at an early age, perhaps just a few days after our birth - a most worthy custom to we do well to imitate. This is a solemn duty of parents.

In the marriage rite, the couple is asked, "Will you receive children loving from God and bring them up according to the law of Christ and his Church?" Thus, from the very beginning of the existence of their family, spouses acknowledge that openness to the gift of children, and their subsequent formation in the faith, is an essential part of their divine vocation.

How can we pass on the faith from within our families? Family prayer is foundational and indispensible. Sunday Mass, frequent - if not daily - recitation of the Holy Rosary, prayers before meals (even when dining out), the observance of Holy Days, and emphasizing the religious aspect of holidays that have become increasingly secularized are all ways of fostering a life of faith within the family. It is never too late (or early) to introduce family prayer into one's daily routine. Perhaps we can mark these final days of Advent with an intensification of family and personal prayer.

Mary is mentioned at the very end of St. Matthew's genealogy. She married into a great family, and made it greater by her holiness, rooted in her total embrace of the will of God. How intense must have been the prayer of the Holy Family at Nazareth, and what a great source of unity it must have been for them. Let us ask a little of that grace for ourselves as Christmas draws near.

Fr. Stephen B. Reynolds is pastor of St. Theresa Catholic Church in Sugar Land, TX, a suburb of Houston. You may visit the parish website at: www.SugarLandCatholic.com.

- - -

Pope Benedict XVI's Prayer Intentions for January 2013
General Intention: The Faith of Christians. That in this Year of Faith Christians may deepen their knowledge of the mystery of Christ and witness joyfully to the gift of faith in him.
Missionary Intention: Middle Eastern Christians. That the Christian communities of the Middle East, often discriminated against, may receive from the Holy Spirit the strength of fidelity and perseverance.

Keywords: Family of Jesus, genealogy of Jesus, Gospel of St. Matthew, daily homily, year of faith, humanity of Christ, St. Theresa, Sugar Land, Fr. Stephen B. Reynolds

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1 - 3 of 3 Comments

Erin Pascal
4 months ago
Thank you for such a wonderful post Father Stephen!
Indeed every bit of the verse, chapter and book of the Bible has a grand purpose and meaning for all of us. Even a seemingly plain list of names can impart many important lessons--the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus and the beauty of a faithful family. God's Holy Book never ceases to amaze me.
mike robertson
4 months ago
Many years ago in Catholic grade school, our nun told us Jesus could have walked into Jerusalem as an adult. Instead God chose to have His only begotten Son have the same experience of life as we had, i.e. beginning with conception in His mother's womb (by conception of the Holy Spirit, of course) and continuing with birth and the rest of His life until death. Starting back in the early 70's when, as a child, I first heard about legal killing of children in the womb, I have always thought it nonsensical that people could claim life does not began with conception. As we pray for the those killed in Newtown and their families, we need to ask hard questions of Catholic democrats and others who voted twice for someone who thinks it should be legal to kill girls and boys outside of their mom's womb even after they survived the attempt to kill them in the womb. Jesus was Himself in Mary's womb. I was myself in my mom's womb. Everyone reading this was the same person in their mom's womb. It is not a stretch to believe that a culture with such disrespect for God as to allow legal killing of innocents may have to deal with more sorrows as the horror in Newton than if we chose as a society to obey God. No surprise either that the Catholic democrats' candidate is trying to close Church institutions under the guise of health care. Or that he claims more wisdom than God as to what constitutes marriage. Or that he refused to acknowledge God on Thanksgiving. The biggest mystery is how someone with such a platform could obtain votes from people who attend Mass.
J. Bob
5 months ago
What is also noted, besides the tongue twisting name ( to our language) is the inclusion of two foreign women, Rehab & Ruth. In some, an introduction, that Jesus is represented all humanity.

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