Holy Family of Jesus. Mary and Joseph
Sir: 3: 2-7, 12-14; Col 3: 12-21; Mt 2: 13-15, 19-23
In our readings for this feast
of the Holy Family are messages of wisdom
about what promotes life.
For instance, in our first reading,
Sirach tells us that those
who honor their fathers live long lives.
Their prayers are answered and they are gladdened by children.
In our second reading Paul then tells us
that what promotes life is to let the peace of Christ
control our hearts.
Our gospel reading is a lesson on
getting as far away as possible from those
that take life from us.
The Holy Family flees from King Herod
and his violence.
These readings offer positive thoughts
on how to live a good life but as a culture we tend
to be more focused on the negative,
on what gets in the way of a good life.
For example, it’s likely most of us
have a good idea of the leading causes of death
in the United States.
If you don’t know, here are the top five:
heart disease; cancer; stroke;
respiratory disease and accidents.
Most of us want to know the leading causes
of death because we wonder how we might die.
But have you ever wondered what might be leading causes of life?
A new book, called The Leading Causes of Life provides an answer.
Instead of chasing death the authors tell us
how to promote life.
After much research the authors of
The Leading Causes of Life
discovered five common roots of a good life.
The common roots are found
in what the authors call connection, coherence,
agency (or action), blessing and hope.
I’m going to talk about all five briefly
and then conclude with some homework for each of us.
According to the authors, the number one leading
cause of life is connection.
What the authors mean by connection
is that human life can only be found
in the large number of connections we make with our families, friends, neighbors, faith members and fellow citizens.
Without being connected with others we become
isolated and alone,
which can lead to depression, ill health and death.
We are connected through the promises
we make and keep.
We are connected through our love for one another,
through our families and this faith community.
Connection gives us life and heals our wounds.
Connection is vital, but it’s not enough.
Connection wants to spring to the
next leading cause of life, which is coherence.
Coherence is “a sense that life makes sense,
that what happens is comprehensible,
that events are not random but,
at least, somewhat predictable as a whole.”
That despite all the evil in this world,
goodness is greater.
That the meaning of our existence is not invented by ourselves,
but is discovered through faith, hope and love in our Creator.
Coherence ties together what we believe
about God and about all that connects us.
The Bible helps us find coherence.
Our Catholic tradition teaches us the way to coherence.
Our understanding of democracy
through our American Constitution
gives us coherence as a nation.
Imagine what live in America would be like
if we didn’t have our Constitution.
Human life is sustained by coherence.
But coherence and connection are still not enough.
The third leading cause of life is what the authors call agency, or action.
After we find connection and have coherence
about why we’re here,
we are left with some questions:
“What am I to do with my life?”
What does God call me to do?”
And, “Am I doing it?”
There are so many concerns and conflicts
in our busy lives, and so many things
to think about that it’s easy to forget
our true calling, our purpose.
Our great purpose in life,
according to our Church teaching, is to know,
love and serve God.
We can do that whether we work at a gas station, at home,
or in a courtroom.
When we discover our true calling and put it into action,
we set ourselves on course for a good and happy life.
The fourth leading cause of life is blessing.
But blessing depends on the other leading causes of life.
Without connection, blessings cannot happen.
We cannot bless ourselves.
We can only ask for blessings.
We give blessings to others and we receive them.
We are constantly blessing others. It’s just a matter of what we bless them with.
Do we bless them with negativity and criticism,
or do we bless them with
with heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience,
as Saint Paul advises us today.
Blessing is tightly linked to connection with others.
Coherence, or understanding why we bless, gives meaning to blessing.
Blessing is an action.
We need to do something to bless, even if our blessing is only
a prayer for another, it requires action or agency.
Blessings have the power to change the way we live, the way we see life
and how we see ourselves.
Without blessing,
God’s abundant grace would be lessened considerably.
The final cause of life is hope.
But hope has to be informed.
Wishful thinking will not do.
Our hopes have to be grounded in reality.
Otherwise, we may end up in denial and despair.
Some of us live with unrealistic hope—we hope our spouse will change
instead of loving him or her as they are.
If we could just accept them as they are they might, in fact, change.
Our hope is most informed by the life of Christ.
Following the way of Jesus is to follow
informed hope,
because he tells us the right things to hope for, which are redemption,
the forgiveness of sins and eternal life.
Hope that is connected, coherent, grounded in action
and expresses blessing is the cause of a good life.
On this feast of the Holy Family, I invite each of us in the next week
to examine our lives, to see if we are living
the leading causes of life. To look at how connected we are with others,
to ask if we have coherence in our lives—
do we understand why we’re here;
to look at whether or not we are living our true calling, doing what God wants us to do;
to see if we are blessing others and to ask ourselves if we are grounded in hope
that is informed.
Informed by our loving God
who says this to us through the prophet Jeremiah:
“I have plans for you, plans for your welfare,
not for woe, plans to give you a future full of hope.” 29:11 ff