THE FAMILY IS SACRED

THE FAMILY IS SACRED

Today is the last day of the year 2023. For some, the time has gone too soon, for others it has been the opposite. But whether for one or the other, this year is coming to an end. And as often happens, many of us reflect on our lives and make a balance between the good and the bad that each person has had to live through. But within this reflection, beyond thinking between good and bad, it is good that we consider that there are things that many of us take for granted because we have them and sometimes they do not enter into the evaluation of our reflection. One of those things that we should think about, because we have never been lacking, and should never be lacking, is the love of God and the love of family. These loves are eternal loves. How could you live without them? What life is that which does not live love?

Today, Sunday, we celebrate the Holy Family, that family from Nazareth made up of Joseph, Mary and the little newborn Jesus. Today we look towards them to understand the blessing that is the family, that even God wanted one. Today we look to them to understand the sacredness of each life and the holiness to which we have all been called in each family.

Today's gospel presents us with the Family of Nazareth going together to the temple, to present the newborn to God, in an attitude of gratitude. This should remind us that the family must remain united in faith; faith that each and every member of the family celebrates. That parents transmit the experience of God to their children is vital, because all life comes from Him, and we must return to Him. And as we walk through life, we should all be granted the grace to live according to what today's gospel says about Jesus, already at the end: “The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.”

Let us thank God for the family, and let us ask that the family be that safe place in which each of its members is loved and served, while together they walk towards God, loving and serving Him. And that, after the example of the Family of Nazareth, each family is sacred. Today let's also meditate on this. Amen.

P. Carlos Flores, OSA