Ecclesiasticus 3:2-6 / Colossians 3:12-21 / Matthew 2:13-15, 19-23
As the year 2019 come to a close in a couple of days’ time, prominent news agencies have already made a review of what are the top news of the year, i.e. the most read and the most watched news.)
Certainly, there are much top news both in the international scene and on the local scene.
There are just so much news flooding the air waves and on our mobile screens every day, and the news come by the hour, and maybe even by the minute.
But if we were to take a moment and ask ourselves, what is the news that had an impact in our lives, we may have to think for a while.
Of course, we may have our own pick of what is the top news of 2019, but how a piece of news has an impact on us depends very much on one thing.
And that is how much we are affected by it and how it unites us closer to one another. In other words, the impact of a piece of news on a group of people, regardless of whether good or bad, depends on its unifying effect.
We the church, may remember certain events of 2019 that united us in solidarity.
We may remember that in April this year, there were two tragedies that happened. One was the raging fire at Notre Dame Cathedral. The other was the Sri Lanka church bombing.
Both events had an impact on us and although there is nothing much that we can do about it, in an emotional sense, it made us feel united as a family in the faith. It was like a family tragedy.
On this feast of the Holy Family, the gospel passage had the spotlight on Joseph.
The gospels have no quotes from him and he seems to be that silent father-figure whose actions spoke louder than words.
But if we were to ask Joseph, what were the events that had an impact on him and changed his life, he would have quite a list to share.
Firstly, after a dream in which he had a vision of an angel telling him what to do, he took Mary home to be his wife.
Then he and Mary had to go to Bethlehem for the census. It was there that Jesus was born and since there was no room, the infant Jesus was laid in a manger.
And then another dream, and he had to take Mary and the Child to flee to Egypt in order to escape from King Herod who wanted to kill the Child.
After Herod’s death, came another dream, and he brought Mary and Jesus back to Israel, but as there was still danger in Judaea, he brought them to Galilee and settled in a town called Nazareth.
Those were not just mere impactful events. Those were crisis moments and life-endangering moments. But those were moments that Joseph remembers. Those were also moments that he showed his true character and also brought the family together.
So today, we celebrate the feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. They are called the “Holy Family” and not the “Happy Family”, or the “Lucky Family”, or “Healthy Family”.
They are the Holy Family because in dangerous crisis moments, they stayed together in faith and love and they gave us a model of what a family should be.
The top news of 2019 would probably not have anything about the family. The world-changing events do not seem to have anything to do with our families.
But it is said, and very profoundly so, that if you want to change the world, go back home and love your family (St Mother Teresa).
It is love that can change the world and it has to start with the family.
And usually it is in dangerous crisis moments that family love and unity is built, as the following story will show us.
It was the coldest winter ever. Many animals died because of the cold.
The porcupines, realizing the situation, decided to group together. They had quills, but the quills of each wounded the closest companion.
After a while, they decided to distance themselves, and they began to die, alone and frozen.
So they had to make a choice: Either accept the quills of their companions or disappear from the earth. Wisely, they decided to go back to being together. They learned to live with the little wounds that were caused by their close relationships because the most important part was the heat that came from the others. With that, they were able to survive.
For a family to stay together there are two things that are necessary: pray together and to eat together.
That is what the Mass is about – as God’s family, we come to pray together and to partake of Holy Communion so that we can become like the Holy Family.
The Holy Family won’t be featured as the top news of 2019. Nor will the family that prays together and eats together and stays together make any waves in the news.
But it is not the news that changes the world. It is the simple and humble family that will change the world.
And the family can change the world by simply praying together, eating together and staying together.