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In today’s world, which is losing its understanding of the nature of the human person and the natural family, the Holy Family is the model for our family as a safe haven, a spiritual garden.

We think of Genesis as the book about God’s creation of the vast universe from nothing, out of nothing but love as a place for humanity to live, explore and enjoy.

The late Rabbi Jonathan Sacks notes in his enlightening book, I Believe, that the creation story is only two of 50 chapters in Genesis. The other 48 are stories about getting the family right — family conflicts, feuds, betrayals and jarring relationships that are settled in the last two chapters with three blessings.

Jacob blesses his grandsons. Sacks observes that, unlike tensions often between parents and children, “between grandparents and grand­children there is no tension, only perfect love”.

Then, Jacob blesses his 12 sons. Finally, Joseph, second only to Egypt’s Pharaoh, forgives his fratricidal brothers who sold him into slavery, and blesses them.

Sacks says that the Torah is from the beginning telling us “the family is prior to all else, to the land, the nation, politics, economics, the pursuit of power and the accumulation of wealth”. It is where “love brings new life into the world”, making it “the most spiritual of all institutions”.

Also, family trials and tribulations shape the intellect and emotions. The family is where we learn patience and gain humility and wisdom.

Genesis is “a candid, honest, fully worked-through account of what it is to confront some of the main problems within families, even the best,” says Rabbi Sacks.

Christmas Crib

In December, Christians display the Christmas crib in their homes to celebrate the birth of Christ the Saviour, and the Holy Family as the model for families.

Yet, even the Holy Family had its challenges. It took five acts of divine intervention to bring and keep it together.

The Angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and asked her to become the Mother of the Saviour of the world; at the Incarnation, the Christ Saviour was miraculously conceived in Mary’s womb. Joseph had three divinely inspired dreams, messaging him first to marry the pregnant Mary, then to take the family and flee to Egypt, and then later to return safely to Israel after the death of Herod.

The crib holds in its divine glow the Holy Family, shepherds and the Magi, all overseen by angels.

The Scriptures say that the shepherds went “running” to Bethlehem after a choir of angels announced the Saviour’s birth, and after they were surrounded by the shekhinah — the glory of the Lord that appeared over the Ark of the Covenant at Mount Sinai.

Shekhinah is a Hebrew word for “dwelling” or “settling”, and refers to God in a place, or in the world, an aspect of God that we can see and experience. It is grammatically feminine, as in, she is like the moon reflected, reflecting the Divine light.

Before the new-born Saviour, the shepherds fall to their knees and fulfil the ultimate purpose for which all humans were created – to worship the Divine.

The Magi, from Persia, were known throughout the Eastern and Roman worlds as learned scholars, men of great understanding and of wisdom that only comes with great humility. These knowledgeable astrologers were astounded by another light, a moving bright star that compelled them to undertake a pilgrimage to find a new-born king, whom they understood would be of great importance to the future of the world.

When the star settled over the birthplace of this new King, the Magi also were humbled to kneel and adore the new-born King and present to his family gifts of gold (for kingship), frankincense (that was key to the role of priest, signifying holiness), and myrrh (a burial spice).

Joseph oversees the family. Joseph the just, Joseph the worker, Joseph the foster father and protector, Joseph the reliable, the available.

And nearest to the Christ child is Mary, the archetypal Christian, though in her case entirely without sin, the source of new life for the world.

A Spiritual Garden

Mary takes us to her Son. He does not show us the way. Rather, Christ is the Way, the Truth and the Life — the Light of the world. He luminously showed his divinity (shekhinah) at the Transfiguration.

Peter Kreeft called the Holy Family the “spiritual garden” where Christ was cultivated and prepared for his mission of salvation. Kierkegaard described the enormity of Christ’s mission — if you think the creation of the universe from nothing was something, Christ does something far greater: He turns sinners into saints.

As Rabbi Sacks says: Genesis was about the family, because God could not pull the Jews together as a nation unless they first got the family right. It is the foundation of Judaeo-Christian civilisation.

In today’s world, which is losing its understanding of the nature of the human person and the natural family, the Holy Family is the model for our family as a safe haven, a spiritual garden.

May you and your family have a safe, happy and holy Christmas.

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Republished with thanks to News Weekly. Image courtesy of Unsplash.