From Fr. Mark-December 28, 2025

From Fr. Mark

This weekend, December 27 & 28, the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, Fr. Levi James and I will be switching parishes for the weekend. I will be witnessing a marriage at Holy Cross in Wendelin and Fr. Levi will be witnessing a marriage here at Holy Childhood and each of us will be celebrating the weekend masses, Fr. Levi at Holy Childhood and St. Liborious and I at Holy Cross-Wendelin, St. Joseph-Olney, St. Joseph-Stringtown and St. Lawerence-Lawrenceville. Please welcome Fr. Levi for the weekend.

                        I thank you all for your expressions of affection and your warm greetings during this time. It is my third Christmas with you and I am very happy to serve you as your pastor. I strive everyday to guide you and show you the path to God. A thousand thanks to all of you who have become my spiritual family. I also thank you for your financial support towards our parish; without your collaboration the parish cannot move forward and thanks to your sharing heart we can move forward.

                        I cannot stop thanking and congratulating on this Christmas day all our volunteers: lectors, extraordinary ministers, ushers, choir members, and the active members of all the groups and ministries of the parish. All of you are the heart of the parish, I feel very grateful for all the support you bring to our parish community. Thank you very much for all your effort.

            Finally, I thank and congratulate the Staff of our parish for the hard work they have done this past year. They have worked as a team and I know they have given their best and will continue to do so. I am very happy with all of them because they are a great team and they give their best to serve you as you deserve it, whilst they always seek to show the face of Christ. For me as a pastor, they are not just employees, they are a family of faith who help me carry this parish forward.

            I wish this Christmas to be a time of hope and spiritual reconciliation for all of you. May the grace and peace of Baby Jesus abundantly bless your homes, your families, your intentions and all your projects. We wish you a Merry and Holy Christmas, full of peace and well-being.

 FEAST OF THE HOLY FAMILY

OF JESUS, MARY, AND JOSEPH

The Feast of the Holy Family celebrates the sanctity of the Holy Family (Jesus, Mary, and Joseph), as well as the family unit. It is observed on the Sunday after Christmas, or if Christmas falls on a Sunday, then it is observed on December 30th instead.

Devotion to the Holy Family became more popular during the 15th century, and they appeared prominently in works of art during this period. It was during this time that the Holy Family was presented as the ideal for Christian families, and that purpose continues to this day.

Although little is known about the lives of the Holy Family from canonical sources, they have been a source of great interest among Christians for hundreds of years. During the 1490s, veneration of the Holy Family gained popularity and it became a central focus for many works of art of the time.

                        Since 1921, the Feast of the Holy Family has been a liturgical celebration in the Catholic Church—ever since it was added to the liturgical calendar by Pope Benedict XV. Since 1969, the Feast of the Holy Family has been celebrated in the General Roman Calendar and during the season of Christmastide.

What Does the Holy Family Teach Us?

The Scriptures paint the early life of the Holy Family as God calls them to a special mission. With the angel Gabriel, we greet Mary and learn of her calling to become the Mother of God. Our introduction to St. Joseph consists of him deciding to divorce Mary quietly, believing she brought shame and dishonor upon him and his family. But an angel invites Joseph to change his mind and take Mary into his home, to become the guardian of Mary and Jesus, the husband of Mary and foster-father of Jesus.

In that home at Nazareth we meet a couple who shows an openness to allowing God to lead their life together. Mary surely had other plans for her life; as many believe, she took a vow of virginity at an early age, so becoming a physical mother was something she did not anticipate. Yet, she heard God’s invitation, and knew that His plans were better for her life; therefore, she gives her fiat — that is, her “yes” to God.

St. Joseph opens his heart to the messenger sent by God and takes Mary into his home. This would not be the first or last time that St. Joseph followed God’s lead in his life as he protected the Holy Family. After Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem, they follow the prompting of an angel to flee into Egypt for safety and wait there until another angelic message leads them back home. The Holy Family is a great example for families everywhere to always be open to whatever God’s will might be and to always be listening for God to speak. He might speak his will in prayer or through another person. By our own prayer and discernment, we too can follow God’s lead for our life.

A Teacher of Virtue

The home should be the principal place of catechesis. Unfortunately, many families today allow the Church to fill that role alone. The home of Nazareth, in addition to the local synagogue, would have been the place of instruction for the Christ Child. The Holy Family taught Jesus how to read, and at the start of his public ministry Jesus would read from the scroll and declare the passage to be fulfilled in their hearing (see Lk 4:21). Mary and Joseph would have taught the Christ Child how to pray, especially the Shema, and years later Jesus would teach his disciples how to pray with the Our Father. Joseph would have handed on his trade to his son, who later would die on the wood of a cross. Jesus had a great concern for the poor and the marginalized. In the home of Nazareth he learned generosity and kindness. The home of Nazareth reminds us that families have the responsibility of teaching their children the Faith and to model the virtues. Jesus had most excellent parents; Mary was without sin and Joseph is described as a just and prudent man. Parents today can learn from Joseph and Mary on how to teach their children.

A Call to Chastity

The Catholic tradition upholds the belief that Mary remained ever-virgin. St. Joseph often is referred to as Mary’s most chaste spouse, and in the Litany of St. Joseph is recognized as the chaste guardian of the Virgin. Perhaps this is yet another way the Holy Family provides an example to our modern world, often assaulted by sexual promiscuity and fleeting lustful thoughts. The chaste relationship of Joseph and Mary reminds all Christian faithful that, even in marriage, chastity is to be observed. The practice of natural family planning (NFP) is one way a couple observes chastity in their marriage. The fidelity of Joseph and Mary to each other also gives great example and encourages couples in their fidelity to one another, even in difficult circumstances. The chaste relationship between Joseph and Mary means they experienced intimacy in different ways through their common life together. Their purity of mind and heart of mutual love for each other and the Son of God is indeed worthy of imitation by all families.