Fr. Tim Davison was born and raised
in Gallipolis, Ohio and is a product of St. Louis Church there. Currently, he is pastor of a large parish in
Tulsa, Oklahoma. While visiting his
ailing father, he gave this very eloquent and meaningful sermon on the Feast of
the Holy Family December 27, 2009 in the church where he grew up. It's a beautiful reflection on the Holy
Family and what the Christian family should be.
THE HOLY FAMILY AND
OUR PARTICULAR FAMILIES
By Fr. Tim Davison
For Christians the Holy Family is
the most perfect example of what every Christian family should be. And we need models to help us to strive
toward the very best family possible. What
do we see in the Holy Family living together in Nazareth that families today
can try to imitate?
Obedience.
St. Luke tells us that Jesus, the Son of God was obedient to Mary and
Joseph. And so we see obedience as one
of the virtues that even Jesus practiced in His youth. It is a fact that many children would do well
to imitate. Obedience to parents is a
Christian virtue that can incline children to practice a loving obedience
toward God which is so vital for the Christian development. As long as parents are not commanding their
children to sin, the children should obey their parents as the representatives
of God, Our Heavenly Father. That is why
the Fourth Commandment is listed as the first one among the ones that deal with
our relationship toward our neighbor.
As a priest I have seen how
destructive toward the family’s peace and well-being is the spirit of
disobedience.
Prayer
& Teaching the Faith. What else do we see in the Holy Family that
families today should seek to imitate?
Undoubtedly Mary and Joseph taught Jesus His prayers and gave Him good
example by their own lives of piety and reverence toward God and the holy
things of God. They took Him to
Jerusalem, the center of their religious practice of the faith, and fulfilled
the precepts of the Jewish religious law.
Jesus, even though He was God’s Son, still grew in human understanding
and love as He practiced His Jewish religion.
In observing the religious law the Holy Family left us an example. Prayer and obedience to God’s law are part of
the picture for a family that is a school for Christian life. How many families neglect daily prayer
together and obedience to God’s commands to their own detriment.
Work
Ethic. Another important element that we see in the Holy Family’s life
together is work. Certainly there were
times of rest, but also time to work in the home or in the shop. Idleness and wasting time were not part of
the picture for the Holy Family nor should they be for families today.
Helpfulness,
Generosity, and Sensitivity to the Needs of Family Members. Along with work
comes helpfulness to one another.
Thinking of others and their needs, being generous in offering help to
each other, and overcoming laziness is a very important aspect of life for a
Christian family that desires to live in a holy way. Again, the family is a school to teach the
virtues that children need in order to mature in the faith and learn to put
their gifts at the service of one another.
Healthy family life is hard work in itself. There are many setbacks and headaches and
heartaches along the way.
Some
Silence. But through it all Christian families should keep in view the life
of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph in Nazareth.
How much silence was observed in that holy house? I can imagine that there was ample
opportunity for silent reflection to occur.
Is that possible in modern homes?
Anything is possible if one truly desires it. Perhaps it is recognizing the value of silence
that has been forgotten today in many homes.
The
family today experiences many challenges.
So many marriages fail. So many
distractions are present in the homes with the tv and internet, and all the
many social activities that children are involved in at school, etc. It can be very difficult to find time
together in a meaningful and constructive way.
At times the parents have to stop and really think deeply about how to
make sure that their family is a school for teaching true Christian virtues and
values. It takes a lot of prayer and a
lot of work to create a true domestic Church where God is obeyed,
loved, and honored and where each member of the family is truly helped to live
a Christian life.
The family is the basic building
block of any society. A society is only
as strong as its families. Holy families
that pray together especially the holy rosary are helping to build a strong
tomorrow for the Church and Society. It
is certainly worth all the hard work and effort involved because where there are
healthy, happy, generous, and obedient children and where parents are truly
guiding and teaching the children the Christian virtues the whole society
benefits. Let us pray to the Holy Family
of Nazareth……Jesus, Mary and Joseph for all families today.
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