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Gospel: Mt. 12: 46-50
While Jesus was speaking to the crowds,
his mother and his brothers appeared outside,
wishing to speak with him.
Someone told him, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside,
asking to speak with you.”
But he said in reply to the one who told him,
“Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?”
And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said,
“Here are my mother and my brothers.
For whoever does the will of my heavenly Father
is my brother, and sister, and mother.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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There’s an old Chinese proverb that says, “Not one family can put a sign outside their home with the words: No Problems Here.”
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Even the Holy Family had their share of drama.
In the Gospel, Jesus is preaching inside someone’s home, when all of a sudden Mary and other family members appear wanting to speak with him.
They’re not there to ask Jesus if he’s coming home for dinner; they’re looking to silence him. As it’s written a few verses before, some think Jesus is, “out of his mind” (Mark 3:21).
I’m sure some of his family’s concern was driven by the desire to protect him from being harmed. But the truth is, even some of those closest to Jesus struggled to accept him for who he said he was: the Son of God.
Being doubted or misunderstood must’ve been quite painful for Jesus.
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Not one family – not even the Holy Family – can say, “No problems here.”
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What problems or concerns do I face in my own family?
And how might I work to resolve them?
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Often, the first step is listening with an open and humble heart.
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Image credits: (1) Jordan B. Richards (2) Duccio (3) The Peanut Gallery, WordPress