'May we and our families always seek the Lord in all things'

By Archbishop Thomas Wenski - The Archdiocese of Miami

Homily preached by Archbishop Thomas Wenski at the archdiocesan picnic in C.B. Smith Park, Oct. 10, 2015.

Today we wish to bring something of the spirit of Philadelphia and the World Meeting of Families to our Archdiocese. So today we have our own meeting of families. Today’s Gospel reading is particularly appropriate for our meeting today.

A woman speaks out. Her reaction to Jesus’ words is, to be sure, much more positive than the reactions of the Scribes and Pharisees. They were upset with what Jesus was saying and doing. She, on the other hand, was filled with praise. She compliments Jesus by praising his mother. In doing so, she fulfills Mary’s own prophecy expressed in her Magnificat when she said, “All generations shall call me blessed.” And certainly we count ourselves among those generations each time we pray the “Hail Mary” and say “Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.”

Jesus does not deny the truth of what she said but he adds to her words by pointing to the source of all true blessedness or happiness – namely union with God. Mary was blessed and we are too, if like Mary, we know God and find joy in hearing and obeying his word.

Thus the question for us today is, “Are we a blessing for our families and neighbors?” Our goal in life, the very reason we were created in the first place, is for union with God. As Saint Augustine said: Our hearts were made for God and our hearts are restless until they rest in him.

An early martyr once said that "a Christian's only relatives are the saints." Following Jesus Christ and seeking the will of God brings us into a new family, a family of "saints" here on earth and in heaven. In following Jesus we become adopted sons and daughters of God. This gives us a family that extends beyond those relationships derived from flesh and blood. That’s why we can speak of our parish families, the family that is the Church.

But at the same time, our flesh and blood families are in a very real way “domestic churches.” Through baptism, our flesh and blood families are also made up of “saints.” Our vocation in our families – whether we are parents, children, or siblings, is to help one another to become in fact what we have become in baptism – namely, saints. In others words, we have to help each other “hear the Word of God and keep it,” that is to say, to achieve that union with God for which each one of us has been created. If we do this then we will be, like Mary, a blessing for our families and neighbors. This is the Gospel, the good news of the family, that we are called to proclaim by our lives.

As Pope Francis reminded us in Philadelphia there are no perfect families, except perhaps that Holy Family of Nazareth. Today, we invoke the prayers of that Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. We ask that they help each one of our families – imperfect as they may be – to know something of the joy of God’s presence in spite of the messiness of our lives. It is that joy which reveals to us something of the Mercy of God who loves each one of us and never ceases to invite each one of us to be one with him. Hearing God’s word and keeping it makes it possible for us to give mercy and to receive mercy, the mercy that can renew the relationships of not only our flesh and blood families but also of those larger families to which we also belong.

Today, of course, is a day of fun, a day of relaxation, a day to “rest” together with our families in the Lord. Hopefully, for those who didn’t bring their own food, there will be ample food provided by the food trucks. But may we always hunger for God’s word and preferring God’s will to our own; may we and our families always seek to please the Lord in all things.