Sunday Gospel Comment
Alberic Jacovone OSB
YEAR A HOLY FAMILY - 26.12.04 Sir 3,2-6.12-14; Col 3,12-21; Mt 2,13-15.19-23 The most famous refugee family The
most holy family.
Today, we thank God for the gift of our family. Matthew’s Gospel invites us to
reflect on the family of Jesus Mary & Joseph, contemplating in the Holy
Family the model for and the
richness of our own family life. We have a long tradition of honouring Jesus
Mary & Joseph as they fulfil God’s design to establish for Our Lord a
family on earth, thus creating a family context for the Incarnation of God’s
Son among us. At the same time the feast of Holy Family allows us to see another
aspect of God’s designs being fulfilled, as the Holy Family, represent the
courageous families, who by the millions, are still being forced to flee from
their homes to seek asylum in other countries. At this time in human history,
when so many people find themselves torn into escaping from their homes and
fleeing for their lives, let us join together in human solidarity & offer
today’s prayer, as a plea for all migrants & refugees in multicultural
Australia and in the world: “God of all, as we honour the flight of the Holy
Family into Egypt, watch over all who are fleeing from death or persecution.
Open our hearts to their plight. May we give the protection that your Son
received....”. Today, let’s spend quality time, firstly to thank God for,
‘the gift’ that we are to each other in our families. For this, let each of
us find a way to express & celebrate the well being, peace & joy of one
another in our homes, where (like Jesus) we grow physically, emotionally and
spiritually, allowing God’s enabling love to grow in us. Secondly, to
recognize that most of our families were called
by God, from other continents, to create multicultural Australia as we
are today. Of all people, we must now welcome the genuine refugees & asylum
seekers, who like Jesus Mary & Joseph are torn out of their home and forced
on us. The Bible reminds God’s people “always welcome the stranger, since
you too were strangers in Egypt”. Dad,
will you be your family’s “dreamer”?. Typically of Matthew, the event of the flight into
Egypt is totally the responsibility of Joseph, head of the Holy Family. With
absolute trust in God he undertakes the arduous journey across the desert of
Sinai into Egypt. All along, Matthew makes the parallel between our story and
the story of Moses in Egypt, to alert us that even as a baby, God’s Son is
carrying the task of leading God’s People into freedom as Moses had done at
the time of Exodus. The role of dreamer, really stands out for Joseph in
Matthew’s Gospel: through dreams, Joseph is inspired, discerns risks,
recognizes God’s will and chooses to obey it. Dreams warn him of dangers &
direct him into action: first to take Mary as his wife (I,20); then to hurry
& escape into Egypt with Mary & baby Jesus (2,13); then to return to his
homeland of Israel (2,20); then to settle -but not in Judaea- in Nazareth of
Galilee (2,22). In Matthew, Joseph is paralleled with another famous Joseph
-also a famous dreamer- in Old Testament times. Because of his dreams, this
other Joseph was hated and sold into Egypt by his brothers (Gen 37,8); but
later, it was he who saved their lives by his ability to interpret Pharaoh’s
dreams (Gen 41,25). May St Joseph inspire our parents in this creative role of
fulfilling the dream God has for our families. May we constantly &
prayerfully seek, interpret, adopt & live out God’s dream for our family.
The Church invites our families to become what we are already, namely a
‘mini-church’, a place of prayer honour & love, where Jesus lives, as he
lives in the bigger church, which is the larger Christian community. Make Sunday a family day with Mass & family space, where we are
there for each other. ______________________________________ |
