Sunday 26 December 2021

The Holy Family

 

A SERMON BY
 
FATHER FRANCIS MAPLE

FATHER FRANCIS MAPLE

THE FINE ART OF LIVING TOGETHER Luke 2:41-52 
 
The number one need of our world today is for people to learn to live together in harmony.  How wonderful it would be if people of all religions and nationalities lived peacefully.  Peace would prevail everywhere.  

Jesus went with His family to the Passover Feast in Jerusalem.  They made the pilgrimage in a large company of friends and relatives.  When the feast was over, everyone started home, except Jesus.  He decided to stay behind.  Mary and Joseph and their party had travelled one full day without Him, assuming that He was somewhere in the group.  Sometime that evening, it became apparent that He was not with them.  His frantic parents headed back to Jerusalem in search of their Child.  It took the better part of three days for them to find Him.  Can you imagine what they were feeling during that time?  

When they finally found Him, Mary said, "Son, why have You done this to us?"  A question that any mother or father would ask under the same circumstances.  Not that He was deliberately unkind.  He felt the call from His Father to stay on in Jerusalem.  But we can ask, "Why didn't He inform His parents?  It would have saved them a lot of heartache.  

After this event, we are told that He went home with them and "progressed steadily in wisdom and age and grace before God and men".  He was learning many things, among them the fine art of living together.  What are the basic ingredients of this art?  I think the first is commitment.  For people to live together in harmony, they must be committed to one another.  A man and a woman stand at a church altar, and say, "I do".  That is their answer to the questions, "Do you take this woman to be your wife?  Do you take this man to be your husband?"  They, of course, are doing more than taking.  They are also giving themselves, each to the other.  That is one of life's deepest commitments.  Without it, there can be no marriage.  There can be no home.  There can be no successful living together.  Joseph and Mary made that commitment, which is part of the reason we call them "the Holy Family".  The process, however, does not stop there.  A baby comes into the home, and the parents enlarge their commitment.  It now includes their new born baby.  

Whatever it may cost them, they will see to it that his or her needs are met.  They will provide food, clothing, shelter, discipline and, above all, love.  No sacrifice will be too great, if caring for their child requires it of them.  That is what it means to be parents.  It is, first and foremost, a commitment to their child.  In the Bible, especially the New Testament, the family is the main model for living together.  But it neither begins nor ends with husband, wife, and child.  Paul traced it back to God.  In his letter to the Colossians, he wrote, "You are God's chosen ones."  That means God has committed Himself to us.  Then, on the basis of that, Paul expanded it to include other people.  He appealed for "heartfelt mercy, with kindness, humility, and patience."  "Bear with one another", he said,  "Forgive as the Lord has forgiven you."   When we recognize the commitment that God has made to us, it stands to reason that we would make the same commitment to others. It would just not make sense for us to exclude anyone.  

If we are to live together in harmony there is another ingredient and that is compromise.  Whether it be in the family, or community, or nation, or world, living together is a matter of give and take, which means compromise.  The husband, who always has to be right, will never have a good marriage.  He may win the arguments, but he will lose the trust and respect of his wife.  The people in authority, who always have to be right, will never have a harmonious city.  They may win the struggles, but they will lose the spirit of community.  The nation that always has to dominate cannot be assured of peace.  Whenever and wherever people live together, sadly you will find conflict, but this should not be so if there is give and take and compromise and love for one another.

Lord Jesus, living together in harmony is the number one challenge facing our world today.  The three things needed for there to be peace in our world today are respect for one another, commitment and compromise.

27 comments:

  1. I agree absolutely here. Regarding husband and wife:-
    If my husband was in charge of the finances we would be broke. If I was in charge of the mechanics the car would not start:-) That is living in harmony. God bless you and yours Victor. 'Let no man put asunder whom God has joined together' That is definitely true in my life, God joined my husband and myself together.

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    1. What wonderful sentiments. Thank you so much, Brenda.

      God bless you and your family always.

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  2. ...many have forgotten the fine art of living together these days.

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    1. Indeed, you are sadly right, Tom. The world will not know peace until it learns to forgive.

      God bless you and yours.

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  3. Tinyurl.com/traditionalmass Volume 1 of 2 is an enlightening book regarding The Mass of the Roman Rite: ITS ORIGINS AND DEVELOPMENT (Missarum Sollemnia). This is the replica of the 1951 translation explaining the traditional Eucharistic celebration through the ages by Joseph Jungmann

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  4. Dearest Victor,
    Yes, the Harmony which has been taught to us through Christianity seems to have lost its patina... it almost completely did wear off or even gets dismissed.
    Only now I read that Father Francis Maple is from the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin.
    Our late friend Padre Juan did marry us and he was a Capuchin Priest: https://mariettesbacktobasics.blogspot.com/2015/03/25-year-anniversary-of-our-church.html
    He truly blessed us after having waited SEVEN years for family members to come back into the fold, in vain... So we went ahead and traveled to Chile. We visited this Padre later when he was retired and back in The Netherlands, as well as writing each other frequently. He prayed for us a lot and obviously still does so from heaven...
    Hugs,
    Mariette

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    1. Yes, Father Francis is a Capuchin Monk/Priest. I have known him for many years and he raised a lot of money for charities through his singing, records and CDs and his books.

      I like your post about your wedding anniversary.

      God bless, Mariette.

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    2. Dearest Victor,
      It was quite an adventure for both of us to stay at the Santiago, Chile Friary of the Capuchins. Our friend Padre Juan had traveled the 19 hours by train to meet us there and together we rode the night train back to the southern tip. Never have we seen such clear skies, no wonder that people come from all over the world to study astrology there. I hardly slept in my turning seat, but looked up through the sky roof... in admiration of our Creator. Railroad was in-between the Coastal Mountains and the Andes so the views were fabulous.
      And then we got married and did some more sightseeing and rode back in a bus with a sleeping seat! The best ever travel experience.
      Thanks for your comment there...
      Hugs,
      Mariette

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    3. What beautiful memories of your wedding day. Thank you so much Mariette for sharing your story with us. Wishing you and Pieter happiness always.

      God bless.

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  5. I once read an article and it was talking about "starter" marriages like it was expected you would be married more than once, so much for respecting the sanctity of marriage. People just march through life not caring about anything except themselves, very sad. People don't like committing to something that doesn't benefit them. Respect, they respect themselves and money. Such a dark and sad commentary on humans, I do hope things will change but that is a very tall order.

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    1. Yes it is a sad commentary on modern society and its outlooks on life. I understand almost a third of marriages end in divorce. So tragic for all concerned.

      God bless, Bill.

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  6. There is a battle of good and evil in our world. I don't think harmony will save us. Redemption, yes, but compromise will rob us. 😕

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    1. What an outlook on modern life!

      God bless you, Sandi.

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  7. Excellent! Respect, yes ... Commitment, of course. But Compromise? So often overlooked. Even at my advanced age (*smile*) I find myself resisting those on the other side. Thank you for sharing this!

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  8. Often positions become entrenched with neither party willing to give way ... both in marriage and in life in general. Compromise is not a sign of weakness; but wisdom perhaps.

    Thank you so much, Mevely. God bless you always.

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  9. When I was listening to the Gospel in church today the line "Son, why have You done this to us?" really jumped out at me. It's just like an angry parent to make it all about them, and a sign that Mary did not completely understand.

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    1. Remember that Mary was human and was having human emotions; no matter how much she knew about her son, Jesus, and His mission on earth.

      God bless, Kathy.

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  10. Wonderfully well said, thank you.

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  11. Harmony and Peace, two things well worth wishing for and working towards. We could start by agreeing that all religions are basically the same and that none is better than any other.

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    1. Let us rejoice in what unites us and not argue about what we disagree on.

      God bless, River.

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    2. "...could start by agreeing that all religions are basically the same"

      Are they?

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  12. I love today's feast. One of my favourites. The Holy Family xxx

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    1. Amen, Grams.

      God bless you and your family always.

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