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Jesus, Mary and Joseph fled to Egypt to escape Herod’s killing of all young babies. Please check your Bible.
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The Holy Family- Cycle C
December 27, 2015
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Opening Prayer
First Reading: Sirach 3:2-7,12-14
Psalm: Psalm 128:1-5
Second Reading: Colossians 3:12-21
Gospel Reading: Luke 2:41-52
• The Feast of the Holy Family, which developed in the 17th century, honors the family group of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. Built on the Gospel accounts, this family is looked upon as a model of ideal family life. To promote family life and build up devotion to the Holy Family, Pope Benedict XV established this feast for the Universal Church in 1921.
• This story, which we know as the Fifth Joyful Mystery of the Rosary (like many other stories found in the “infancy narrativesâ€) appears only in Luke’s Gospel. The infancy narratives end in the same location as they began, in the Jerusalem Temple (Luke 1:8).
• All male Jews ages twelve and older were required to make three pilgrimages to Jerusalem every year—at the feasts of Passover, Weeks (Pentecost), and Booths (Tabernacles). Custom excused those who lived far away from the feasts of Weeks and Booths, but not Passover. Even though only older males were under obligation, often the entire family would go, traveling in large parties or caravans (males and females with small children traveling separately until making camp at evening) for convenience, fellowship, and safety.
• This is the first time we hear about Jesus since the return of the Holy Family to Nazareth from Egypt, where they fled to escape the wrath of King Herod (Matthew 2:16-23). It is the last time we hear about him until his appearance at the Jordan to be baptized by John (Luke 3:1ff). This undocumented period of time is often called “the hidden years†of Jesus’ life.
QUESTIONS:
• What was the significance of this Feast, for which Joseph and Mary made a pilgrimage from Nazareth to Jerusalem every year (see Exodus 12; Deuteronomy 16:1-8)?
• How much does Jesus seem to know about his mission? How much do his parents know (Luke 1:26-56; Matthew 1:18—2:23)? If Jesus is God, how could he “advance in wisdom and age and in favor before God and man†(verse 52)? See CCC 472.
• Why do you think Luke included this episode in his Gospel? How did Luke know about this, and other details surrounding Jesus’ birth and childhood (see verse 51)? In this same verse, what is Jesus attitude to Mary and Joseph? How is this a reflection of the First Reading?
• What three qualities did Jesus display before the teachers in verses 46-47? What two reactions did he provoke by his actions in these two verses?
• Why do you think Jesus was “surprised†that his parents were looking for him? Where should they have looked? How have you looked for Jesus in all the wrong places?
• Has your hunger for God ever been misunderstood by your family? How? How do you maintain a healthy balance between daily responsibilities and serving God?
Closing Prayer
Catechism of the Catholic Church: §§ 531-534, 583, 503, 2599, 517, 472
I turn to you, dear parents, and implore you to imitate the Holy Family of Nazareth. -St. John Vianney