2023-12-31 02:41:02
Jesuit Father Antoine Kerhuel introduces us to meditation with the readings for Holy Family Sunday, liturgical year B.
Textes: Gn 15, 1-6; 21, 1-3; Ps 104 (105), 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 8-9; He 11, 8.11-12.17-19; Lc 2, 22-40
The last day of the year 2023 coincides with the feast of the Holy Family, and it turns out that, on this Sunday, the texts of the liturgy turn us resolutely towards the future. The first two readings bring us into the presence of the figure of Abraham, he who had faith in this God who, while promising him countless descendants, called him to leave his father’s house to go to an unknown land. . And the gospel read today relates the astonishing words that, during the presentation of Jesus in the Temple, two elders (Symeon and Anne), spoke regarding Jesus: Jesus – whose name means “God Saves” – will lead the people not towards a new land, but towards a new life… and they will do so by engaging in the astonishing path of passion and resurrection. The texts of the feast that we celebrate clearly tell us that the Holy Family is at the service of the new future that God is opening to the people of Israel and to all humanity.
Faith is at the heart of Abraham’s journey. Abraham welcomes the word which tears him away from the daily life he led in the country of the Chaldeans; he then sets out towards a new land. Abraham also welcomes the word which announces to him, while he himself and his wife are old, a descendant as numerous as the stars of the sky and the sand on the seashore. The faith which inhabits Abraham is all turned towards the future , a future which, far from being possessed in advance, is revealed in the familiarity he maintains with God throughout the days, whether they are dark or bright. Abraham’s faith is not regarding an inheritance, but regarding a promise. The author of the letter to the Hebrews, an extract of which is read this Sunday, marvels at this faith which will allow Abraham to go through so many trials. Abraham senses it, feels it, knows it: God is faithful to his promise. This certainty guides his life.
Wonder is at the heart of the words spoken by the elders Simeon and Anne, in the extract from the Gospel of Luke heard this Sunday. Simeon had received assurances that he would not see death before seeing the Messiah awaited by Israel. Finding the Holy Family at the Temple for the presentation of Jesus, he recognized the expected Messiah by seeing the infant Jesus, and he launched a song of joy. That said, Simeon does not announce a Messiah who will be covered with glory according to the world, but a Messiah whose journey will go through trial; in what we understand as an allusion to passion, Simeon says to Mary “your soul will be pierced with a sword”. Anne, for her part, continues to proclaim the praises of God and to speak of this infant to those who are waiting for the Messiah. Mary and Joseph keep in memory the strong words heard on the day of this presentation of Jesus in the Temple. And we can think that these words will have guided their way of accompanying the childhood of Jesus.
The Feast of the Holy Family is therefore an opportunity for us to reflect on the faith to which our families are called. It is a faith that is nourished by God’s fidelity towards us, a faith turned towards the future that God gives us, a faith inhabited by a promise: in Jesus, God will lead us to the life.
May our families, beyond the difficulties they encounter in daily life, radiate this faith. May each member of our families – whatever their age – flourish in the discovery of the love by which God leads every human being towards life. May our families grow as true domestic Churches, attentive to welcoming the promise that, in Jesus, God addresses to each person.
Happy New Year 2024 everyone!
Follow the meditation proposed by Father Antoine Kerhuel, SJ.
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