The Holy Family – Jesus, Mary, and Joseph – is the model family, and they, more than any other family, offer the best spiritual example on how to be the kind of family that God wants.
Major Feasts. “Each year his parents went up to Jerusalem for the feast of Passover” (Lk 2:41). Passover was one of the three major Jewish pilgrimage feasts, along with Pentecost and Booths. It was a big effort to go from Nazareth to Jerusalem, roughly eighty miles, on foot or by donkey. When it came to the main feast of their faith, all three celebrated it with great faith and devotion in the Temple each and every year. Likewise, when it comes to our major Christian feasts, Christmas and Pentecost, as well as the Triduum of Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter, following the example of the Holy Family, every Christian family should commit themselves to celebrate these feasts together as a family in church each and every year.
Age Twelve. Luke is careful to mention that Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to Jerusalem when he was twelve, the age a Jewish boy celebrates his bar mitzvah, when a young person, after being well-formed spiritually by his parents, would make his own adult faith commitment. Similarly, Christian parents are to form their children in the faith with prayer at home, Mass every week, conversations about Jesus and Bible stories, the reception of First Reconciliation and First Eucharist, faith formation classes, all directed toward the Sacrament of Confirmation when a young person, after being well-formed spiritually by one’s parents, would eagerly and gladly make his or her own adult faith commitment in Jesus Christ and his Catholic Church.
Caravan Travel. The Holy Family made the trip to Jerusalem in a caravan, a large group of relatives and friends that traveled together. Mary and Joseph surrounded their child with like-minded people, other faithful Jews who were firmly committed to God and their faith, people who would have had a positive influence on their son and help to protect him from evil threats. Likewise, Christian parents have an obligation to surround their children with good people who are positive spiritual influences, whether it be adults or peers, relatives or neighbors, teachers or classmates, coaches or teammates. It is crucial to monitor with whom we spend our time on the “caravan through life,” because who we associate with says everything about our values.
Rules and Obedience. “He [Jesus] was obedient to them” (Lk 2:51). Mary and Joseph had house rules based upon the values of their Jewish faith, and they insisted on them with their young son Jesus, even after he made his adult faith commitment. He may have been older, but he was not free to do whatever he pleased. His parents insisted that he do the right thing, and Jesus complied. Similarly, Christian parents must have house rules for their children based upon Jesus and the gospel, and they apply not only to their children when they are small, but also when they are teenagers, or even older if they decide to stay at home.
