As we continue our journey through the Apostolic Exhortation Amoris Laetitia we are reminded that the family is the foundation for all stable and just societies and the breakdown in family life begins the slow and painful breakdown of the greater society. Two things become very clear throughout the exhortation. First is the biblical foundation on the family as the symbol of God’s presence and love in the world. The second is the long tradition of Catholic teaching on the unity and blessing of the family as husband and wife with the fruitfulness of children.
As our school year ended at St. Lucy parish I have been thinking a lot about families and how we grow together in support of each other. We hear many times the oft repeated phrase, “it takes a village to raise a child” which is true to some extent but the village can only raise the child when there is a unity of purpose and a goal that respects the dignity and freedom of the mother and father in determining what is best for their sons and daughters. It is the unity that comes from a common dream and hope that unites us as one through God’s call to serve. No family can be fruitful if it sees itself as overly different or “set apart”. To avoid this risk, we should remember that Jesus’ own family, so full of grace and wisdom, did not appear unusual or different from others…Jesus did not grow up in a narrow and stifling relationship with Mary and Joseph, but readily interacted with the wider family, the relatives of his parents and their friends. (182)
When we are able to live in the interaction where the child discovers his or her wider purpose in life is be loved as a child of God we then begin to see joy spring forth in vibrant and fruitful love. A married couple who experience the power of love know that this love is called to bind the wounds of the outcast, to foster a culture of encounter and to fight for justice. God has given the family the job of “domesticating” the world and helping each person to see fellow human beings as brothers and sisters….For their part, open and caring families find a place for the poor and build friendships with those less fortunate than themselves.(183)
It is now rare that we hear stories of families that welcome the stranger into their midst. When I was at St. Martin of Tours, John and Ellie, two true disciples would spend their gifts of time, talent, and treasure in service of the poor of the community. Often inviting strangers to meal and purchasing items for those in need. It was watching the Gospel come alive when they would tell stories of gentle kindnesses that influenced not only their children but also a parish to become more compassionate and generous with our gifts. Their example was always a challenge and call for others and me to “fight for justice” in small acts of charitable blessing. It wasn’t about changing the systems of the world it was about seeking the presence of God and serving Him in our sisters and brothers. The example of parents doing this allows their children to see and experience a different kind of generosity, one that flows not from the natural bond of biological connection but from the beating heart of love.
By their witness as well as their words, families speak to others of Jesus. They pass on the faith, they arouse a desire for God and they reflect the beauty of the Gospel and its way of life. Christian marriages thus enliven society by their witness of fraternity, their social concern, their outspokenness on behalf of the underprivileged, their luminous faith and their active hope. Their fruitfulness expands and in countless ways makes God’s love present in society. (184)
It is the act of Christian charity that grows the vines of fruitfulness in the heart of the family, especially the children who witness this love. When we allow our self to be extended, to be stretched in love, to be given the gift of sharing what we have for others we discover the peace of Christ in the marriage and the family, a peace that heals and binds the wounds of sin as we work towards a better and more just world. God calls each of us, through the family to be his hands, his face, his word of comfort to one another. It is who we are called to be as a living Church whose stones are broken and shared for all to see.
To end with my favorite quote from the last few years… For a parish to actually be a ‘family of families’ calls for concrete actions of hospitality and generosity. St. John Paul II said that ‘opening the doors to one’s home, and still more of one’s heart,’ is a mode of imitating Christ. (#88 from Love is our Mission: The Family Fully Alive)
God Bless
Fr. Mark