Despite his quietness and the gentleness of his approach – my father is not a weak man.
Family is very important to me. I grew up in a family with many siblings, and my parents also grew up in a similar environment. Because of this upbringing and perhaps also because of the person who I am, there is a strong urge in me to family. Even when they are driving me crazy, it is important for me to be around family and to have family involved in my life.
And I have been reflecting on family. You see Christ was a member of the Holy Family – which means that God Himself placed Himself within the constraints of a family. This means that there were instructions and rules and respect that God Himself had to comply with in order to be the Perfect Son in the Perfect Family. And God did that to Himself. He made Himself within those constrains of family. He made it so that when He came to Earth He would have to listen to His Mother and His Father. He made it so that He would have to follow the decisions made within the family, even if He did not personally agree with them (though this was unlikely as the family followed the Will of God and therefore, did not deviate from God’s Will).
And I have been thinking about why… Obviously this was to set an example of miserable souls like mine so that we would know how we should behave in our own families… But it was also for other reasons too…
“Jesus said: ‘For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. He who believes in him is not condemned; he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.’” (John 3:16-18).
In other words, God sent His Only Begotten Son, Christ, to Earth so that He could reveal to us – through Christ – that He is a Family with Himself. Before Christ’s Conception and Birth, we did not know about the Holy Trinity. We knew about the One God, but we did not know about the Persons in Him. And this is significant. And it is significant because it means that we are able to change the world and do things differently so that we could understand that we are talking not just to God, but to the FAMILY, the RELATIONSHIP of God. And I believe, in my heart and soul, that it is that relationship that is going to fascinate me for eternity as I contemplate the Beatific Vision of God – because to witness such love is surely the most amazing thing…
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.