The Twelve Days of Christmas – Day 7, “Being A Holy Family?”

In the days after the birth of Christ Jesus, Mary and Joseph found themselves pondering the good news, the prophetic words from Simeon, and Anna, in the Temple, and a visit from some mysterious Persians – Magi – who had traveled nearly a thousand miles (from the East) to worship the child King revealed to them in a strange star.  The visit of the Magi seems strange in our modern context, but they presented to his parents gifts fit for a King.  

Two dreams followed this visit.  One came to the Magi warning them not to return to Herod to tell him they had found the newborn King.  The second dream came to Joseph.  As before an angel of the Lord came to Joseph in a dream and told him to quickly leave where they were living (Bethlehem?) and “flee to Egypt…Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him”.  Remember?

Matthew 2:13-15 
 When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy.
 On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.
Now after they (the Magi) had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him."
 Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt,
 and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, "Out of Egypt I have called my son."

Matthew again reminds us that God is in control of these events.  The Magi visit was purposeful, and so was the flight to Egypt.  Herod was afraid of Jesus, because he could be a rival to his throne, and wanted to kill him.  The Magi were drawn by God to discover the newborn King and when they found him they worshipped him and presented him with gifts.  Gold in tribute to the new King; frankincense that was used in sacrifices because he was a Priestly King; and myrrh that was used for the dead to remind all that this newborn King was destined to die.  They left for home, by another road, which implies that the visit to Mary, Joseph, and the baby Jesus, had changed their lives.

Joseph is a God-dreamer.  That is how God first informed him of what was happening to Mary in the conception, and it is how God warns him to flee to Egypt because of Herod's plans to kill all of the children of Bethlehem.  Joseph is a God-dreamer, which is the same as his Old Testament Joseph in Genesis who dreamt of his role in God’s plans.  Mary and Joseph took their newborn baby and went to Egypt to live and escaped the massacre of the innocents wrought by Herod’s paranoia. 

The Church has always referred to this account as the feast of the Holy Family.  Mary, Joseph, and Jesus are certainly “the biblical holy family”.  When you have God’s providential care and angels coming alongside at every moment – that makes a Holy Family.  Yet, what we must grasp is that God desires every family to be a Holy Family.  Parents who live with a God-dream of raising children who will someday all begin their God-dreams will be Holy Families.  Parents who care more about God’s word to them than the world around them, and who act upon God’s word in obedience to it will always be a Holy Family.

Today, we honor Mary and Joseph for their God-life.  God chose the two of them out of all of the human beings who have ever lived to raise His Son in a world that wanted to kill him as a baby and one day would kill him as a sacrifice for our sins.  God knew what he was doing in that Holy Family, and if you commit your family to Him, he will direct your ways as a parent, or even as a child to be that Holy Family today.

 

Peace