主題：在家庭生活中成聖
聖家不是一個完美的家庭！且看，聖母是一個未婚媽媽，無論是古今中外，都會承受到或多或少的歧視。雖然教會奉聖若瑟為「聖教之保障」，但可以想像，俗世中沒有一個正常的男士會羨慕他。那麼，為甚麼教會以一個被俗世所視為「不完美」的家庭，作為我們家庭生活的榜樣呢？
讓我們從創世紀開始反省罷，默想天主對家庭有甚麼期望。
聖家之所以是神聖的，足以作為人類家庭的楷模，是因為大聖若瑟與聖母瑪利亞，圍繞著天主子耶穌基督，以祂為中心來生活。就是說：家庭生活最重要的元素，就是讓天主在家庭中，佔一席位！教宗方濟各在【愛的喜樂】宗座勸諭裡說：「沒有一個家庭是完美的，也沒有一個家庭從一開始就已經是完備的；反之，家庭具備的愛的能力，應逐漸成長。」（AL#325）即使是有缺陷的家庭，即使是社會上未能成家立室，鰥寡孤獨的一群，天主同樣願意祝福他們；即使如何不完美的家庭生活，也不能阻止天主保護家庭及愛護所有其中的成員。「家庭是社會不能缺少的福祉，但應獲得保護。」（AL#44）因此，即使聖家不是一個完美的家庭，教會仍以聖家的美德，作為我們家庭生活的榜樣！同樣道理，即使教會，由眾多家庭所組成的大家庭（AL#87）中有令人失望的神職人員和教友，天主仍願意透過這「罪人的教會」，成為「戰地醫院」，「與軟弱的子女同行，關注和照顧他們…恢復他們的信心和希望」（AL#291），祝福這個憂傷的世界。我們還可以祇愛耶穌基督，而不愛教會嗎？
各位兄弟姊妹，常言道「家家有本難唸的經」。讓不完美的聖家，成為我們信德、服從和溫良的榜樣，鼓舞我們的心智，在成聖的路上，向前邁進。
天主創造了第一個人之後，表示「人單獨不好」（創2:18），所以天主給他造個與他相稱的助手，成家立室，讓他們在家庭中成聖。可惜，這個家庭並不幸福！
首先，女人對天主缺乏信德，竟然相信魔鬼的謊言而懷疑天主對人類的慈愛。她抵抗不了成為天主的誘惑，吃了天主禁止吃的果子。（3:4-6）結果喪失了天主的恩寵，增加了懷孕的苦楚，受制於男人的權力（3:16）。厄娃因為無信而招至全人類的詛咒！為了亞當的安全，天主親口禁止他吃知善惡樹上的果子（2:17），亞當竟然為了一個女人，違背了天主的命令，結果地成了可咒罵的，勞動變成了痛苦的（3:17）！亞當因為抗命而招至詛咒！加音出於嫉妒和忿怒，拒絕成為自己弟弟的守護者，殺死了亞伯爾（4:9）。加音成為了一個流離失所的人（4:11-12），他的忿怒招至詛咒！人類的第一個家庭，因無信，抗命和忿怒，帶給了全人類，原罪的詛咒！
雖然瑪利亞願意以守貞的方式事奉天主，她不明白怎樣可以做救世主的母親（路1:34），但她「信了由上主傳於她的話必要完成」（1:45），瑪利亞那無比的信德，化解了厄娃的無信所帶來的詛咒！雖然天主子的心靈極度痛苦，但祂並沒有堅持自己的意願，「惟照天主的意願成就」（22:42）；耶穌基督「貶抑自己，聽命至死，且死在十字架上」（斐2:8），把全人類從罪惡的努役中，解放出來。天主子以祂的謙遜服從，化解了亞當不服從所帶來的詛咒！大聖若瑟沒有堅持自己的主意，暗中休退瑪利亞。他溫良地接受天主的委派，成為「聖家之長」，承擔起守護聖子與聖母的任務。若瑟的溫良，化解了加音的忿怒所帶來的詛咒！新約第一個家庭的成員，以他們的信德，服從和溫良，解除了原罪帶來的詛咒！
天主保祐！
圖片鳴謝：
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/HolyFamily_Coello.jpg
Solemnity of the Holy Family, Year A
Theme: Sanctification Through Family Life
The Holy Family is not a perfect family! Look, the Blessed Virgin Mary is an unwed mother who would suffer more or less discrimination from generation to generation, from East to West. Although St. Joseph is the "Protector of the Holy Church", no normal men on earth would envy him. Why then does the Church set up an imperfect family as the exemplar of our family life?
Let us begin our meditation from Genesis to find out what God expects of families.
Although the First Family God sets up in the New Testament was not perfect, it successfully lifts the three curses incurred by the First Family in the Old Testament. Although the Blessed Virgin Mary intended to serve God with her chastity and she did not understand how she could be the mother of the Saviour (Luke 1:34), she "believed that what was spoken to her by the Lord would be fulfilled" (1:45). Her insuperable faith undoes the curse incurred by Eve's lack of faith! Although the Son of God was undergoing extreme agony, He did not insist on His own will, "not my will but yours be done" (22:42); Jesus Christ "humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross" (Philippians 2:8) to liberate all humanity from the slavery of sins. The humility and obedience of the Son of God neutralizes the curse incurred by the disobedience of Adam! St. Joseph did not insist on his decision to divorce quietly the Blessed Virgin Mary. He meekly accepted God's commission to be the "Head of the Holy Family", shouldering the burden to be the keeper of the child and its mother. The meekness of Joseph, breaks the curse incurred by Cain's anger! With their faith, obedience and meekness, the First Family of the New Testament lifts the curse of the Original Sin!
The Holy Family is holy and an exemplar of all human families because St. Joseph and the BVM led their lives around Jesus Christ, the Son of God. That is to say, the most important element in a family's life is to reserve a room in the family for God! Pope Francis says in Amoris Laetitia, "No family drops down from heaven perfectly formed; families need constantly to grow and mature in the ability to love." (AL#325) Even broken families, even members of the society who are unable to form a family, those widowers, widows, orphans and loners, God is willing to bless them the same. No matter how unsatisfactory family life is, it shall never prevent God from protecting the families and their members. "The family is a good which society cannot do without, and it ought to be protected." (AL#44) Thus, even though the Holy Family is not a perfect family, the Church still hoists the virtues of the Holy Family to be the exemplar of our family life! In a similar way, even though there are many disappointing clergy and parishioners in the Church which is "a family of families" (AL#87), God still wants this Church of sinners to "accompany with attention and care the weakest of her children ... by restoring in them hope and confidence ... The Church's task is often like that of a field hospital" to bless this troubled world. Can we still love Jesus Christ only and not His Church?
Brethren! "Each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way". Let the imperfect Holy Family be the exemplar of our faith, obedience and meekness, cheer up our mind and soul to march ahead on the path of sanctification.
After creating the First Man, God says, "It is not good for the man to be alone." (Genesis 2:18) Thus God made a helper suited to him to set up a family in which they might sanctify. Unfortunately, this family was not happy!
Firstly, the woman lacked faith in God. She believed in Satan's lies and doubted God's love. She could not resist the temptation to be like God and ate the fruit forbidden by God (3:4-6). Consequently, she lost God's grace so that her toil in childbearing was intensified and her husband ruled over her (3:16). Eve's lack of faith incurred a curse upon all humanity! For the safety of Adam, God ordered him not to eat the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil (2:17). How dare he listened to his wife and disobeyed God! Consequently, cursed is the ground and labour becomes a toil (3:17)! Adam's disobedience incurred a curse upon all humanity! Out of envy and anger, Cain refused to be the keeper of his brother. He killed Abel (4:9). Cain became a fugitive (4:11-12) Cain's anger incurred a curse upon all humanity! Because of faithlessness, disobedience and anger, the First Family incurred upon all humanity the curse of the Original Sin!
God bless!
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