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The story of finding Jesus in the temple (Lk 2:41-52) ended with: “And Jesus advanced in wisdom and age and favor before God and man”. The verb used is ‘prokoptō’ (προκοπτώ), which has technical force for growth in the moral and intellectual life particularly among moral philosophers (cf. Gal 1:14; 1 Tm 4:15). Thus this nuance is more than the ordinary sense of the verb to grow, used to describe Jesus earlier after his presentation in the temple (2:40) but carries with it the sense of advancing or progressing.
In these two summary statements of St. Luke (2:39-40 & 51-52) where he prepared the readers to what is considered the hidden life of Jesus in Nazareth with Joseph and Mary his growing and advancing is in the context of an intimate family upbringing. It therefore highlights, first and foremost that Jesus indeed became man, “when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman…(Gal 4:4) and became like all of us in all things, except sin. Secondly, in this feast of the Holy Family, Mary Joseph and Jesus are presented as model for Christian families. Sirach (3:2-6, 12-14) speaks today of reverence for one’s parents in words that have timeless quality; St. Paul (Col 3:12-21) presents practical ways in which the bond of love expresses itself within the Christian community while Luke points to the obedience of the Child.
The scriptures are totally at odds with the decimation and the demise of the family, so prevalent today- broken homes, single parent families, latchkey children, child abuse, parental addictions, absentee parents working oversees. So the feast of the Holy Family is challenging us to strike at the root of the problem. Jesus indeed grew up in a closely knit family. There is no doubt that he absorbed much from his parents, from the way they lived and worked and prayed. He was formed like any other child. At a given moment they could take pride in their adolescent son. They did their job well.
May every family be able to imitate that family in Nazareth. Jesus, Mary and Joseph pray for us and guide us.
