Dear Parishioners,
On the Sunday after Christmas, the Church celebrates the feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. Family means a great deal to me. I have worked hard over the years to try to keep my family together, wherever and whenever it was possible. Spending time my brothers and sister and their families, especially around the holidays, continues to be a special gift to me. I realize that no family is perfect. We all have to deal with particular family issues and circumstances, varying problems and challenges, diverse personalities, etc. Yet, all of this is accompanied by multiple blessings.
Sometimes I think that certain people tend to idealize the Holy Family and forget the many difficulties and hardships that Jesus, Mary and Joseph had to endure. We read in the Sacred Scriptures that Mary was found with child before living with Joseph. He was initially going to divorce her quietly. (Mt. 1: 18-19) Then, there was no place for Jesus to be born in the lodgings of Bethlehem after Joseph and Mary (now in the final stage of her pregnancy) had travelled considerable distance. (Lk. 2: 4-7) As an infant, Jesus’ life was threatened by King Herod and His parents had to flee with Him to Egypt. (Mt. 2: 13-18) Joseph and Mary seemingly lost—could not immediately find—the boy Jesus during their pilgrimage to Jerusalem. (Lk. 2: 41-51) Mary later witnessed her only Son tortured and killed in front of her eyes. (Jn. 19: 25)
These were not quite the circumstances of a perfect, ideal life, were they? Through it all, Jesus, Mary and Joseph had each other and were bound together by mutual love and respect. They all greatly loved and trusted God, our Heavenly Father, and were obedient to His will as it was revealed and unfolded for them.
Today, problems within the family unit continue to exist—at a somewhat grand scale and pace. Various people question, with some even wanting to redefine, the traditional understanding of “family.” Family life as we once knew it in society seems to be eroding. I contend that we need to look at the Sacred Scriptures to see what they teach us (albeit ever so briefly) about the family life experienced by the Holy Family. Their obvious trust in God in difficult circumstances, their obedience to His will, and their fidelity to God and to one another are great examples for us all to follow.
In addition, on January 1st the Catholic Church celebrates the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God. While Catholics may use the term Mother of God regularly when praying the Hail Mary, some people may have questions about the meaning of this particular title. The Council of Ephesus (431) declared that the Blessed Virgin Mary is Theotokos or God-Bearer (in Greek). In the Latin Church, we use the term Mater Dei. Simply stated, our Catholic belief teaches that:
Although Mary is the Mother of God, she is not his mother in the sense that she is older than God or the source of her Son’s divinity, for she is neither. Rather, we say that she is the Mother of God in the sense that she carried in her womb a divine person—Jesus Christ, God "in the flesh" (2 John 7, cf. John 1:14)—and in the sense that she contributed the genetic matter to the human form God took in Jesus Christ. (Catholic Answers)
We should remember that the Blessed Virgin Mary is solely responsible for the genetic material for Jesus’ human body (in cooperation, of course, with the Holy Spirit) as St. Joseph was Jesus’ foster-father.
As we begin the New Year, I customarily entrust and consecrate my parish family (wherever I am pastor) to the care of the Blessed Virgin Mary on New Year’s Day. I give this parish and all of its parishioners over to the loving care of the Mother of God. I invite you to join me. I can think of no better way to begin the New Year.
God’s blessings in the New Year!
Fr. Ed Namiotka
Pastor
