My childhood home was filled with pictures of Jesus, Mary
and Joseph, representing the idealized family. The child Jesus was always in
the center, flanked on both sides by Mary and Joseph. Many Catholics take time to honor the Holy
Family on the weekend between Christmas and New Year’s. The Holy Family
represents the sanctity of the family unit.
Several years ago, I started praying regularly that all
families would stay intact, wholesome, and holy. To me this meant that parents
would stay together, focus on the needs of their kids, and put their own
ambitions and desires aside for the welfare of the family. My idea of a
sanctified family was of one that was child-centered. As with most flawed
thinking, mine was just slightly off the mark.
The Holy Family was Christ-centered, not child-centered.
The sanctity of a family is not dependent on whether the members are wholesome,
but whether they are set apart for God’s purposes. The focus is not on the
family unit, but on Jesus.
Most families, including
mine, are far from being Christ-centered. In order to focus on Jesus, we
have to take our eyes off of everything else. This seems dangerous, risky, and
counter-culture. It is.
“God, dear Lord, I
only have eyes for you.” (Ps. 141:8 MSG)
Lord, may we be so absorbed by You, that everything else fades in
importance.
No comments:
Post a Comment