December 29, 2024
Discover the deeper meaning and connections found in this weeks' readings, through these great commentaries written by our priests.
Explore this weeks' readings and hear what God is saying to us through His Word.
Find out more about how we can mark this special day in our liturgy.
See our music recommendations for the liturgy.
The Feast of the Holy Family celebrates the family life of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. To be sure, the Holy Family was unique—but in fact, every family has its own special features. No two families are absolutely identical.
The 1st reading (Sir 3:2-6, 12-14) offers Sirach’s reflection on the Decalogue command: “Honour your father and your mother.” Under the influence of Greek education, the command came to be applied to the obedience of children to their parents (Eph6:1-3). But originally the Ten Commandments were addressed to adult Israelites. This command teaches practical respect for elderly parents when they are becoming frail. Sirach regards kindness shown to an elderly parent as a way for us to atone for our sins. Fulfilling this command can sometimes be very challenging, but it is a means of repaying our debt to our parents, who looked after us when we depended on them for everything.
The 2nd reading (Col 3:12-21) offers St Paul’s wonderful vision for the Christian community, including our families, involving kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. We are to put on compassionate hearts, showing forgiveness because God has forgiven us our faults. If wives are called to listen to their husbands, the husbands are called to love their wives and never be harsh with them. If children are called to obey their parents, parents must avoid discouraging their children.
The Gospel (Lk2:41-52) offers the story of the finding of the child Jesus in the temple. Just when we have been celebrating Christmas, the liturgy moves us forward to an event that happened when Jesus was 12 years old. We are reminded that nothing ever stays still in family life, but that people are always growing and developing. Yet such growth often occurs unnoticed, until a particular incident brings it to light.
As Jesus is on the threshold of his teenage years, he is beginning to move away from his birth family and reach out to discover his contribution within a wider world. Although it is a sign of a good upbringing when a young person begins to outgrow his or her family and can confidently take the first steps towards leaving home, it can be painful for parents who can fear being left with the “empty nest.”
The gospel event in the temple is a sign of Jesus’ future life. He is beginning to realise that he must be about his Father’s business, or be present in his Father’s house (depending on the translation). He realises that while Joseph is his foster-father, God is his true heavenly Father. Nevertheless, when he returns to Nazareth, Jesus shows respect to Mary and Joseph by living under their authority.
Every parent wonders how their child will turn out. As Mary sees her son growing taller and wiser, she ponders on these things, as she previously pondered on the shepherds’ acclamation of him when he was just a new born baby.
On this feast day, we pray for our own families, giving thanks for God’s blessings, and praying for God’s help where it is needed.
The Holy Family
CCC 531-534: the Holy Family
CCC 1655-1658, 2204-2206: the Christian family, a domestic Church
CCC 2214-2233: duties of family members
CCC 534, 583, 2599: the Finding in the Temple
CCC 64, 489, 2578: Hannah and Samuel
CCC 1, 104, 239, 1692, 1709, 2009, 2736: we are God’s children now
CCC 163, 1023, 1161, 2519, 2772: we shall see him face to face and be like him
Images of the Holy Family (Jesus, Mary, Joseph and also often St. Anne) became popular in renaissance Europe, as part of the ‘humanising’ trend that marked Catholic thought in the later medieval period. However, it was in the 17th century that a liturgical celebration of the Holy Family appeared in Canada and France. After Vatican 2, the Feast was placed on the Sunday in the Christmas Octave.
The Holy Family is celebrated as an example of family life and the bonds of charity, a theme expressed in the Collect, Prayer over the Offerings and Prayer after Communion.
In the General Intercessions, a bidding for families should be included. Models for this is in the Divine Office, Vol.1, pp.203, 209, 211.
Note: These hymns have been chosen from different sources.
Bread of Life, hope of the world (CFE96, L78)
O little town of Bethlehem (CFE540, L127, LHON526, TCH27)
Once in royal David's city (CFE577 L128, LHON536, TCH30)
Sing of Mary, pure and lowly (CFE652, L341, LHON622)
What child is this? (CFE794, L145, LHON723)
See amid the winter's snow (CFE630, L151, LHON601, TCH34)
Key
CFE - Celebration Hymnal for Everyone
L – Laudate
LHON – Liturgical Hymns Old and New (Mayhew, 1999)
TCH – The Catholic Hymnbook (Gracewing)
Do you have questions about the liturgy and how we are called to participate in it? Explore how the Church councils, saints, and popes have answered this key question and many more.
Every movement of the Mass is rich in meaning but we can become over familiar with it. Rediscover the Mass and explore how it relates to the Exodus story, where many of its rituals come from, and how it makes Jesus present to us today.
