The Sunday after Christmas Day has long been dedicated to the ‘Holy Family’, shifting the attention off the infant Jesus alone and on to his extended human family. In fact this year’s Gospel reading is a record of one of the very few references to anything in Jesus’ life before the beginning of his ministry at about age 30. The time when he remained behind in Jerusalem after his parents and others had travelled there to celebrate the Passover. There is significance in his remaining behind at the Passover but that’s for later in the year but also we are shown the love and care that Mary and Joseph had for him in the way they rush back to Jerusalem once they realised he is not with other family members or his mates.
Jesus was obviously much loved by his earthly parents and it was with that love in mind that I began pondering upon today’s festival. As i did I could not help but put myself in the shoes of the Holy Family as if they were celebrating a Christmas like were do. With everything important happened within a few days.
Firstly, Jesus is born in a stable because there is no where else. Then he is visited by shepherds accompanied by the heavily hosts singing and then with a blink of an eye three magi arrive with gifts and a lots of prophetic words. I imagined Mary and Joseph quite exhausted by it all. A birth would have been enough, let alone being in difficult circumstances and then to be overwhelmed by visitors. I think I would have wanted to hid somewhere to avoid everyone.
New parents are usually knocked sideways by the birth of their first child and they need tome and space to bond with the child and to re-bond with each other. The way we celebrate Christmas doesn’t give Mary and Joseph any space or time to get their heads around the birth of their son, let alone what was said about him.
Many people feel this about the Christmas season. That it all happens a bit too full on and too fast. There maybe some of you who come to Epiphany feeling ‘peopled out’ after having visitors for the celebrations (as happy as that may have been). I find myself thinking that perhaps Mary and Joseph felt that way too, even if the Magi actually visited some two years later, they must have wondered quite what was going on!
As you know what we call the ‘Christmas Story’ is not contained in one Gospel alone it is a coming together of reports in Matthew and Luke’s Gospel accounts with a bit of additional flavouring from John and Mark. Yet, despite all this jumbling up of things the story remains the greatest story ever told. That God comes to us in flesh and blood, to live a life as we do and to show us how much we are loved by our Creator.
I always need time over Christmastide to process this fact anew and the days between Christmas itself and Epiphany is usually the time I try to do it, even if the house is full. The run up to Christmas and the day itself is always ‘full on’ but there is often a lull beginning on Boxing Day, when things are not so frenetic and nothing actually has to be done at any certain time. These days give one a time to draw breath and to look ahead to the new year and to Epiphany and Candlemas. I hope Mary and Joseph had a bit of a lull in how things panned out and that they had time to chat and ponder before they were once again visited by peculiar people or were told to prepare themselves for the worst, when they presented their child in the temple.
I hope that you too will have a bit of a lull in the next coupe days before any more madness starts and that you will get time to simply ponder and be amazed at what this festive time is really all about.