Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph

Catechism Links [1]

CCC 531-534: The Holy Family
CCC 1655-1658, 2204-2206: The Christian family, a domestic Church
CCC 2214-2233: Duties of family members
CCC 534, 583, 2599: The Finding in the Temple
CCC 64, 489, 2578: Hannah and Samuel
CCC 1, 104, 239, 1692, 1709, 2009, 2736: We are God’s children now
CCC 163, 1023, 1161, 2519, 2772: We shall see him face to face and be like him
 

“Christ among the Doctors”
by Giovanni Serodine, c. 1625

Readings for the Feast of the Holy Family [2]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [3]
 
Readings and Commentary: [4]
 
Note: In Dioceses of the United States all the options below are available.  The readings specific to the C Cycle (*) are 1 Samuel 1:20-22, 24-28, Psalm 84:2-3, 5-6, 9-10, 1 John 3:1-2, 21-24, and Luke 2:41-52.
 
Reading 1: Sirach 3:2-6, 12-14
 
God sets a father in honor over his children;
a mother’s authority he confirms over her sons.
Whoever honors his father atones for sins,
and preserves himself from them.
When he prays, he is heard;
he stores up riches who reveres his mother.
Whoever honors his father is gladdened by children,
and, when he prays, is heard.
Whoever reveres his father will live a long life;
he who obeys his father brings comfort to his mother.
 
My son, take care of your father when he is old;
grieve him not as long as he lives.
Even if his mind fail, be considerate of him;
revile him not all the days of his life;
kindness to a father will not be forgotten,
firmly planted against the debt of your sins
—a house raised in justice to you.
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Commentary on Sir 3:2-6, 12-14
 
"Throughout the book each doctrinal passage is followed by a section to do with practical applications, sapiential [wisdom] thoughts on moral conduct, eulogies of virtues and sapiential advice on where to seek things that are truly good, etc. This is the first such section. In it the reader will find an exhortation to prudence in all its various forms." [5]
 
This selection from Sirach is an exposition of the commandment to honor your father and mother. It goes into greater length about the positive benefits that come to the person who does so. It is also consistent with the early Hebrew belief that the honor received by the father of a household was transferred to the children (just as in the omitted verses 8-11, the sins are also transmitted to the children).
 
CCC: Sir 3:2-6 2218; Sir 3:12 2218
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Or
*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.
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Commentary on 1 Sm 1:20-22, 24-28
 
The story of the birth of Samuel to the previously barren Hannah is strikingly parallel to the conception and birth of St. John the Baptist. Both mothers, Hannah and Elizabeth, dedicated their sons to God. In the case of Samuel his mother, in these verses, offers him as a “nazirite": from the Hebrew word nazir, meaning, "set apart as sacred, dedicated, vowed." The nazirite vow could be either for a limited period or for life. Those bound by this vow had to abstain from all the products of the grapevine, from cutting or shaving their hair, and from contact with a corpse. They were regarded as men of God like the prophets, cf. Amos 2:11-12. Examples of lifelong nazirites were Samson (Judges 13:4-5; 7; 16:17), Samuel (1 Samuel 1:11), and John the Baptizer (Luke 1:15). At the time of Christ the practice of taking the nazirite vow for a limited period seems to have been quite common, even among the early Christians; cf. Acts 18:18; 21:23-24; 26.” [6]
 
In this case Hannah dedicates Samuel for life and she left him to be trained with the priests.
 
CCC 1 Sm 1 489
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 128:1-2, 3, 4-5
 
R. (cf. 1) Blessed are those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.
 
Blessed is everyone who fears the LORD,
   who walks in his ways!
For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork;
blessed shall you be, and favored.
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.
 
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
   in the recesses of your home;
your children like olive plants
   around your table.
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.
 
Behold, thus is the man blessed
   who fears the LORD.
The LORD bless you from Zion:
   may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
   all the days of your life.
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.
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Commentary on Ps 128:1-2, 3, 4-5
 
Psalm 128 is a song of thanksgiving. It begins here with the typical blessings given to those following and having faith in the Lord. This selection uses the analogy of the family and the blessing it brings to the faithful, using the symbolism of vines and olives, imagery commonly used in Sacred Scripture.
 
It also supports the creation of woman and the marriage theme in Genesis 2:18-25. It is the logical extension of the two becoming one flesh and the children flowing from that union.
 
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OR: Psalm 84:2-3, 5-6, 9-10
 
R. (cf. 5a) Blessed are they who dwell in your house, O Lord.
 
How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts!
My soul yearns and pines for the courts of the LORD.
My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.
R. Blessed are they who dwell in your house, O Lord.
 
Happy they who dwell in your house!
Continually they praise you.
Happy the men whose strength you are!
Their hearts are set upon the pilgrimage.
R. Blessed are they who dwell in your house, O Lord.
 
O LORD of hosts, hear our prayer;
hearken, O God of Jacob!
O God, behold our shield,
and look upon the face of your anointed.
R. Blessed are they who dwell in your house, O Lord.
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Commentary on Ps 84:2-3, 5-6, 9-10
 
Psalm 84 was used to celebrate pilgrimages to the temple in Jerusalem (three times a year). In these strophes the singer extols the virtue of those that are faithful and concludes with praise to the “anointed” king “our shield.”
 
CCC: Ps 84:3 1770
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Reading II: Colossians 3:12-21
 
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. 
 
Wives, be subordinate to your husbands,
as is proper in the Lord.
Husbands, love your wives,
and avoid any bitterness toward them.
Children, obey your parents in everything,
for this is pleasing to the Lord.
Fathers, do not provoke your children,
so they may not become discouraged.
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Commentary on Col 3:12-21
 
St. Paul exhorts the Colossians with a litany of positive attitudes that culminate in the cardinal axiom of the faith: “love one another.”  He goes on to implore them to let the peace of Christ control their every action and to praise God constantly through Jesus, God’s only Son.
 
The passage describes the rather controversial family hierarchy of the era portrayed by St. Paul. This entire section of the letter is a discourse on harmony within the family of Christ. It is important to note the instruction given in the first part of this reading. Paul describes the Christian rules for relationships: “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.”
 
When the subordinated relationships are described in the verses following, equality in membership in the family is established.
 
CCC: Col 3:14 815, 1827, 1844; Col 3:16-17 1156, 2633; Col 3:16 2641; Col 3:18-21 2204; Col 3:20 2217; Col 3:21 2286
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Or: Colossians 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.  
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Commentary on Col 3:12-17
 
This shorter option omits the hierarchical relationship descriptions. Its focus remains consistent, however, driving the Pauline ideals of harmony and unity within the Christian family. 
 
CCC: Col 3:14 815, 1827, 1844; Col 3:16-17 1156, 2633; Col 3:16 2641
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Or
*Second Reading: 1 John 3:1-2, 21-24
 
Beloved:
See what love the Father has bestowed on us
that we may be called the children of God.
And so we are.
The reason the world does not know us
is that it did not know him.
Beloved, we are God’s children now;
what we shall be has not yet been revealed.
We do know that when it is revealed we shall be like him,
for we shall see him as he is.
 
Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us,
we have confidence in God and receive from him whatever we ask,
because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.
And his commandment is this:
we should believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ,
and love one another just as he commanded us.
Those who keep his commandments remain in him, and he in them,
and the way we know that he remains in us
is from the Spirit he gave us.
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Commentary on 1 Jn 3:1-2, 21-24
 
In this selection from St. John’s first epistle, we are reminded that we are all, through our baptism, adopted children of God, and hence part of his family, the family of the faithful. St. John goes on to remind us of the obligations of that adoption: First is that we believe in Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God. Second, following the formula of the Great Commandment, is that we should love one another.
 
The ending of the chapter speaks of Christians living a life of faith in Jesus.  The Evangelist speaks of  how in faith, Christians are assured, through mutual love, that they are in the Lord and the Lord also resides in them. In adhering to this most important of commandments, the Lord becomes indwelling. As a consequence of our obedience, the love of Christ and love of each other naturally follows.
 
CCC: 1 Jn 3 2822; 1 Jn 3:1 1692; 1 Jn 3:2 163, 1023, 1161, 1720, 2519, 2772; 1 Jn 3:21 2778; 1 Jn 3:22 2631
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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.
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Commentary on Lk 2:41-52

In this account Jesus is discovered after three days (possibly symbolic to the three days in the tomb). This narrative from St. Luke tells the only story from the Gospels of Jesus growing up as a boy, part of the family with Mary and Joseph. (There are numerous stories found in the apocryphal gospels that attribute miraculous abilities and acts to the young Jesus, but these are considered to be of a tradition similar to the boyhood stories of other ancient heroes such as Cyrus and Alexander by those affirming the canon of the Bible). In this account Jesus is discovered at the temple, engaged in discourse with “teachers,” implying he was in the outer halls of the temple. This would have been completely consistent with Jewish Law. The implication, based on Joseph and Mary’s reaction to Jesus' actions in the temple, is that they do not completely understand their son’s mission at this point in his life.
 
We note that he is listening and answering questions and is not presuming upon his station to brag or put himself forward. When Mary and Joseph found him, we are told that Jesus asked, “Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” This statement connotes a familiarity with God the Father, for the first time identifying that relationship over the role fulfilled by St. Joseph, his foster father.
 
Above all, the Blessed Virgin Mary treasures the gift of her son, knowing the greatness in him and beginning to understand the sorrow that had been predicted.
 
CCC: Lk 2:41-52 534; Lk 2:41 583; Lk 2:46-49 583; Lk 2:48-49 503; Lk 2:49 2599; Lk 2:51-52 531; Lk 2:51 517, 2196, 2599; Lk 2:52 472
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Reflection:
 
The sacred texts give us a unique view of the Holy Family.  They were living very typical lives in spite of the miracle of Jesus’ birth, all that had happened regarding their flight to Egypt, and the intense search that Herod had made for the Christ Child.  We are given the story of Jesus, now twelve years old, one year short of the age at which he would have undergone his bar mişwāh.
 
The Holy Family would have come up to Jerusalem with a large number of family and friends from their home village.  This explains why Jesus would not have been missed for some time after the group began its return to Nazareth.  Jesus could have been (is assumed to have been) with family or friends, possibly with his cousins (St. John the Baptist could have been with that group).
 
Any parent can imagine the fear that must have stricken them when they realized that their son was not with the caravan.  Joseph would have remembered his dream and Mary would have remembered the words of Simeon about the sword of sorrow that would pierce her heart.  The panic they felt would have been excruciating, especially given the identity of their son.  We can imagine their prayers as they begged the Father in heaven to keep him safe and bring him back to them.
 
Three days they endured that empty fear, fear that their Holy Family would not be whole again.  Then, to their wonder and intense relief, they found him, sitting with the teachers of the faith in the temple precincts.  We can almost see Mary rush to him, Joseph right behind.  We can see Jesus looking somewhat surprised at Mother Mary’s question.  He would never purposely cause his beloved mother pain (he must have known what she was yet to endure).  He would never have purposely disrespected St. Joseph.  His question would have been innocent: “Didn’t you know I would be here?” What a telling question.  The innocence of his question tells us he presumed his holy parents knew his mission, knew what he must do, knew as much as he did about God’s plan for him.
 
The story concludes with the family returning to Nazareth and Jesus growing up as an obedient son, an example even in his youth.  We recall this story today as we remember the bond of love between mother, father and Christ Child.  
 
In most years, this date would mark the Feast of Saint Stephen, the first martyr and deacon.  It is a celebration we deacons celebrate as, out of the appointment of those first seven servants of Christ, the order of deacons was born.  This year the great Feast of the Holy Family takes precedence.
 
Families are complex in their interactions.  In Christian families, love is the bond that holds us together and because love is so powerful, it can frequently be very hurtful when a member of the family feels that bond has been forgotten or violated by inconsiderate actions.  For those who feel the warmth of love unsullied by these bruises, this holiday season can be one of great joy, for others, God willing, it can be a time of healing, and for others still, at time feeling the pain of lost consolation. 
 
For the past two years, the insidious pandemic has forced many of us into isolation from family and taken the lives of so many family members.  If your family has not been so impacted, this time should be one of great rejoicing (but cautious gathering – how ironic).
 
For those who seek to heal old wounds, we recall the incident with the Holy Family recounted in St. Luke’s Gospel.  How the fear of Jesus’ parents caused them anxiety and frustration.  This was overcome by love, and love heals all wounds.  All that was needed to allow healing was complete forgiveness, easy for Mother Mary who was without sin.
 
For those of us mourning the loss of familiar faces around the Christmas table, missing the stories of past experiences, usually outrageously funny, love and the memory that those who have passed from our sight, have never passed from the sight of our loving Father and rest with him and the Holy Family now, enjoying the warmth of that hearth.
 
The Holy Family is the example of what all Christian families hope to be and struggle to achieve.  We celebrate our status as adopted children of God who, through his Son, offers us a place in his heavenly home. We look forward to a day of great unity and reunion in his Kingdom.
 
Pax

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[1] Catechism links are taken from the Homiletic Directory, published by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, 29 June 2014.
[2] The picture is “Christ among the Doctors” by Giovanni Serodine, c. 1625.
[3] S.S. Commemoratio
[4] The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
[5] The Navarre Bible: “Wisdom Books,” Scepter Publishers, Princeton, NJ, © 2003, p. 399.
[6] NAB footnote on Numbers 6:1-3.