Our Gospel story from St. Luke today on the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph focuses on a specific incident when the Lord was 12 years old. It capsulizes how a family with a young child handled a missing child scenario and indicates for us how a Catholic family needs to consider their life’s journey path towards holiness.
Growing up as a single child and then having reared a family of four children with my wife, I can appreciate the dynamics that goes into prioritizing the direction one takes to make a difference in his or her life. Sometimes the decision is made based on the success one notices, while at other times it is a matter of avoiding what one may see as a negative pathway.
Jesus’ decision to stay behind in Jerusalem after the feast of Passover finished and be with Jewish teachers in the temple was based on a presage of things to come. This would be His new life when He started His public ministry 18 years later after Joseph’s death and become how He would define belonging to a new family.
His human parents, however, were worried about their missing son who was left behind in Jerusalem filled with strangers who might do Him harm. Only a parent who has lost a child can appreciate the anxiety of this horrific circumstance.
When I was 18, I stayed out all night once without telling my parents I wouldn’t be back until the following morning. Upon my arrival the next day there was a police car sitting in front of our apartment with a policeman inside taking down information about me. My mother was in tears and my father was angry at what was happening. The officer, who had witnessed this multiple times, tried to calm everyone and gave me a stern warning about my bad behavior and the turmoil I caused in our family.
It took a while for me to earn my parent’s trust and it taught me a valuable lesson on how as a family we rely on one another to be supportive of whatever is happening in our lives. Later in life I faced similar situations with our children, but now as a parent. Though I was anxious and upset when they were missing, for whatever reason, my main thought was for their wellbeing more than what punishment would be appropriate.
What parenting taught me was that my wife and I were gifted with precious lives created by God and were to be their caretakers in every aspect of their lives: Fundamentally, Sacramentally and Spiritually. Even as they grew older and began to make their own decisions, it was important for us to be there to counsel them when they asked or were confused.
Today, our family is not geographically as close as we once were. We don’t see each other as often, but do keep in contact primarily by phone, e-mails and occasional visits. What we still do is pray, make sure that God is behind the decisions we make and try provide an atmosphere of love, mercy and forgiveness.
Does it always work? No! But it leaves the door open so that when something really important happens that affects the family as a whole, there is hope that each family member will arise to the occasion as best they can to be there for one another.
Reading 1: First Samuel 1: 20-22, 24-28
Reading 2: First John 3: 1-2, 21-24
Gospel: Luke 2: 41-52
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