Category Archives: Holy Family

The family today is under serious threat. We see more and more families becoming broken. We see lack of face-to-face communication taking place; husbands and wives not talking to each other; children not talking to their parents or siblings. Instead of talking, they prefer to text and send messages, as they become more and more dependent on smartphones, whatsapp, Facebook and other gadgets and gizmos to communicate. We see greater increase in divorce rates, because some people are not happy in their marriages and instead of seeking help or making effort to get their marriages fixed, they look elsewhere for love and comfort. We see children being left alone at home or under the care of grandparents, maids or babysitters, as parents work late or prefer to live and enjoy their lives outside. We see elderly parents being abandoned or placed in nursing homes and rarely visited, because some people find it inconvenient to care for them (even though our parents were making sacrifices to care for us when we were young, some of us are unwilling to do the same when they are old). Some parents have even given up or lack patience to teach their children, preferring to wash their hands and let others do their dirty work.

All these things may sound like a hopeless situation. Does this mean that there is no hope for the Christian family? Is the Christian family doomed? No. There is hope, if we are prepared to make God and our faith the center of our lives again. The Holy Family, whose Feast we celebrate today, reminds us that it is not hopeless. The Holy Family was not a perfect family. since they too had their problems; but what sets them apart from other families is their faith in God. They understood that a family would not be able to grow truly as a family unless God is made the center of it. Once we make God the center of our lives, does that mean we will not have any problems? No. But we know that God will care for us and not abandon us. The problems we face become easier to manage, since God is in control.

Today, we give thanks to God for the many families around us. Each family is a precious gift of God, and must never be taken for granted. Let us offer each family to God and pray that each family would make more effort to let God be the center of their lives. Whatever obstacles and problems we face in our lives and in our families, let us not despair or give up. Let us let God be in control in our families, so that with His help and guidance, we would be able to do and accomplish all things for His glory.

There was a time in the past where a family usually consisted of a father, a mother, some children (people in those days used to have many children), and possibly extended family members such as grandparents, uncles, aunties, cousins and other members. Many such families lived in one big house, which we used to call ancestral homes, since several generations lived in them. As the years went by, some members may leave to look for a better life elsewhere, and would return whenever possible to celebrate important events such as Chinese New Year, Christmas, or a birthday, or perhaps the birth of a new member. In those days, this may have been a “usual” or “normal” setup of a family.

Situations change, people move on, cost of living has escalated, and people become more and more anxious about finding better work as well as better living opportunities elsewhere. This has resulted in families dispersing and living in smaller setups. Rarely do we see or hear of families staying in one big house any more. Even such big houses have become rare, as many have been sold and demolished to make way for development.

As people struggle to make ends meet, the relationship between husband and wife, with the children, and even with extended family members may become strained. People begin to concentrate on their careers more and more, sometimes at the expense of family time and proper care of the children. We begin to see more and more families disintegrating or breaking up, divorces happening at an alarming rate, and the number of single parents arising due to one reason or another. The family, it appears, may have become more and more dysfunctional or “abnormal”, in contrast with what was “normal” in the past. As a Christian family, what do we do about this situation that some may be in?

Today, we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family. When we look at the Holy Family, we can discover that the Holy Family does not quite seem to fit what a normal family is perceived to be. Joseph was not Jesus’ real father, though he was married to Mary. Mary conceived Jesus in an extraordinary way, not quite the way a woman usually conceived. Mary appears to have been widowed at a young age as there is no longer any mention of Joseph after the first few chapters of the Gospel. Mary may have been a single mother who had to single-handedly raise Jesus all on her own. All these make the Holy Family appear to be “abnormal.”

But though the Holy Family appeared to be “abnormal,” the Holy Family also gives us a picture of hope and a model to look to. Why is this so? The Holy Family shows us what it means to put our trust and dependence in God, and to put God in the centre of our lives. Joseph put his trust in God and married Mary, even though she was with child and the child was not his as the child was conceived through the Holy Spirit. Mary put her trust and confidence in God when she said: “I am the handmaid of the Lord. Let what you have said be done to me.” If God is at the centre of our family life, then no matter how big or difficult the problem may be, no matter how serious the hurts one experiences, no matter how distant people have become due to one reason or another, God has overcome all because he has been through it all in the person of Jesus.

Today, we give thanks to God for the many families around us. Each family is a precious gift of God, and must never be taken for granted. Let us offer each family to God, and as one big family of God, strive to bring His message of love and peace to all.

Where do we get most of our education from? Some may say from kindergarten. Others may say from primary or secondary school. Others may even say at college or university. However, all these forms of education can only be beneficial to us if we have learnt the basics, and the basics are (hopefully) taught to us at home, at a very young age. It is in the family that we learn to be a person, a citizen, a Christian, and God’s children.

However, the family is under threat. We see more and more families becoming broken. We see lack of communication taking place; husbands and wives not talking to each other; children not talking to their parents or siblings. We see greater increase in divorce rates, because some people are not happy in their marriages and look elsewhere for love and comfort. We see children being left alone at home or under the care of grandparents, maids or babysitters, as parents work late or prefer to live and enjoy their lives outside. We see elderly parents being abandoned or placed in nursing homes and rarely visited, because some people find it inconvenient to care for them (it seems strange and unfortunate that our parents were making sacrifices to care for us when we were young, but some of us are unwilling to do the same when they are old). Some parents have even given up or lack patience to teach their children, preferring to wash their hands and let others do their dirty work. I remember hearing a parent approaching a teacher and asking the teacher to control his son who is very “naughty.” The teacher said: “If you cannot control your son at home, where you see him daily for several hours, how do you expect me to control him, when I see him only twice a week for about 30 minutes each?”

All these things may sound like a hopeless situation. But it need not be, if we are prepared to make God and our faith the centre of our lives again. The Holy Family, whose Feast we celebrate today, reminds us that it is not hopeless. The Holy Family was not a perfect family. They too had their problems. But what sets them apart from other families is their faith in God. They understood that a family is never truly a family unless God is made the centre of it. Does this mean that once we make God the centre of our lives, we will not have any problems? No. But we know that God will care for us and not abandon us. The problems we face become easier to manage, if we let God take control and help us, for he will not abandon us.

Whatever obstacles and problems we face in our lives and in our families, let us not despair or give up. God can and will help us. The question is: are we humble enough to walk in His ways and let Him guide us and our families? Do we offer ourselves and our families to God, so He can transform us into something better?