Merry Christmas

Dear friends,

As we celebrate these holy days of Christmas, the Church would have us ponder the mystery of God’s love for us in the context of the family. Jesus came to us in a family to show us how to live as a family. Looking to the Holy Family we are inspired to imitate them and model our family on theirs.

Pondering the Gospel as it relates the struggles of the Holy Family as Christ came into the world, we see that each family has its trials. We see the God of all, born in utter poverty in a stable on a cold winter’s night. We hear of the wicked King Herod who sees the little baby born in Bethlehem, the King of Kings, as a threat to his own power so he kills all the babies in Bethlehem forcing the Holy Family to flee to Egypt. God did not spare the Holy Family from these trials as Jesus is Emmanuel, God with us. Jesus entered into our humanity to the full. God the Father did not shield His Son from the cruel and hostile world which is a consequence of original sin. Rather, Jesus entered into this cruel world to redeem it, to fill it with His presence.

Jesus wants to be the center of our family so that He may teach us the way of trust and love. The Holy Family shows us this way. Through all their trials and struggles, they trusted in God and His will for them. They trusted that whatever happened would be for their good and the good of all as they knew that Jesus was the One who came to redeem that which was lost, to restore humanity to its proper relationship with God. This all culminates in the mystery of the cross. Jesus suffers and dies for us so that we might be saved.

As we look to the year ahead with its blessings and challenges, I encourage you to think about how to place God more at the center of your life and your family so that He can encourage you and guide you come what may.

Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, I love you! Save souls!

Fr. Jack D. Shrum