Dear Parishioners:
This weekend, we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family. The Feast provides us with an opportunity to reflect upon our own families. The Church tells us that the family is the domestic church; the family is the place where we first and foremost encounter God. It is in the family setting that we first learn how to pray, etc.
As Pope Francis has said about the family:
“The family is the greatest treasure of any country. Let us all work to protect and strengthen this, the cornerstone of our society.”
“A healthy family life requires the use of three phrases: ‘May I, thank you, and I’m Sorry,’ and never, never end the day without making peace.”
“It is my wish that throughout my visit the family should be a recurrent theme. How essential the family has become to the building of this country! And how worthy it remains of our support and encouragement.”
“The family is the fundamental focus of the covenant between the Church and creation.”
“The perfect family does not exist, nor is there a perfect husband or a perfect wife, and let’s not talk about the mother–in–law! It is just us sinners. If we learn to say: ‘I’m sorry and ask for forgiveness, the marriage will last.”
“The family is also threatened by growing efforts on the part of some to redefine the very institution of marriage, by relativism, by the culture of the ephemeral and by a lack of openness to life.”
A few years ago, the Knights of Columbus sent out posters to the various parishes. The picture was of the Holy Family, depicted by a famous artist. The caption read: The Family. It’s work but a work of art.
Families require a lot of work and everyone in the family has a part to play. As we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family, we can all ask ourselves: What am I doing to help my family become a holy family; what am I doing to make my family a work of art?
Remember: Together, we can do something beautiful for God.
In Christ,
Fr. Brian
PS: Don’t forget to hand in your chances for our 50/50 drawing which will take place after Christmas. Send them in by mail or drop them off at the rectory. As the saying goes, you have to in it to win it! So, be in it and win it! Think about giving the chances as a Christmas gift to your family and friends. It will be a nice way to help the parish at the same time. Give them as Christmas gifts to your adult children! The drawing will take after the 12:00 PM Mass on Sunday, January 18th.