Fourth Sunday of Easter - May 7, 2017

Homily for May 7, 2017

Fourth Sunday of Easter

Shepherds of the Domestic Church

 

            This Sunday is traditionally called “Good Shepherd Sunday”, after the beautiful image that Jesus uses for Himself in the Gospel. And on this Sunday, it is traditional to speak about the priesthood, since the priesthood and the Church is a way in which Our Lord continues to shepherd us today.

            But instead, I’d like to speak about a miniature Church – the family. Did you know that your family is a “domestic Church” (as Vatican II calls it)? Families have the same mission as the Church – to help people (in this case, each other) to encounter Jesus Christ, be transformed by His grace, and become saints.

            Some may say, “Really? MY family become saints? You’ve got to be kidding!” We’ve all got imperfect, crazy, sometimes-frustrating families. But in God’s plan of salvation, the family is the tool that He uses to help us become holy – through the everyday joys, struggles, tensions, and love of our family.

            So if the family is the “domestic church”, the Church-in-miniature, then the mother and father are the shepherds of the Church. Let’s take a look at how parents can become good shepherds to lead their family to holiness.

First, a caveat. I am not a parent (in case you haven’t noticed by now!). So I don’t have any first-hand experience of raising kids or leading a family to holiness. But I have had the privilege of knowing and working with thousands of families, and so I’ve seen some certain trends, attitudes, and behaviors that have made for successful, faith-filled families.

So let’s start by looking at WHY we should help our families become saints. I’ve noticed that all good parents and grandparents want their kids to be happy. They make all sorts of sacrifices for the happiness of their kids – whether it be taking them to sports games or dance recitals, paying for extra tutoring or an iPhone for their kids. We would do whatever it takes to make our kids become happy and healthy. But our deepest happiness comes from knowing that we are loved unconditionally and that our lives have meaning. These two desires are only fulfilled by God – only God can love us unconditionally, and our life’s purpose must be to love Him for eternity in Heaven. So, if we want our kids to be deeply, radiantly joyful, they need to know and have a deep friendship with God! Happiness is equal to holiness! If you want your child and your family to be happy, deep happiness can’t come from one more sports trophy or new pair of shoes. Instead, help them to become holy, because only God can give us true happiness!

Let’s take a look at how parents can shepherd their children to become true saints, then! I would propose five suggestions for parents who want to help their children be holy.

First, make sure that Mass every Sunday is a non-negotiable part of your life. No matter where we were as a family growing up – on a camping trip, on vacation, at a sports tournament – my parents would make sure that Sunday worship was the most important thing. That showed me that the Eucharist was really the Body and Blood of Jesus – because my parents were willing to sacrifice for it, going to great lengths to make sure we were at Mass. Going to Mass together as a family made Jesus Christ the heart of our family.

Second, pray together as a family. Growing up, we used to pray the Rosary regularly, and we often went to Eucharistic Adoration together. I know some families who read a Scripture passage every night and talk about it together. Others offer petitions and say “thanks” to God for blessings together. As an old, wise priest liked to say, “A family that prays together, stays together!”

Third, make your home a sanctuary. Fill your home with things such as crucifixes, Bibles, books of saints, small statues of Mary and Joseph, religious paintings. Consider this – let’s say you or your son/daughter comes home from a long, tiring, frustrating day at work or school. You crash down on the couch and look across the room at the wall. If the wall has a nice landscape, you may think, “Oh, that’s a nice picture of the ocean” but it hasn’t really changed your life. But if you had a crucifix there, you might be inspired to turn to God for strength, or unite your small sufferings to His sufferings on the Cross. A mere crucifix, a simple religious picture can inspire us to live a holier life! So make your home a sanctuary.

Fourth, keep sin out of your home. One role of a shepherd would be to protect the sheep from being attacked by wolves or snakes. We have the duty to protect our flock – our families – from being attacked by sin or temptation. That means we should be prudent about what TV shows, music, movies, websites we allow our families to take in. Just because “everyone else” is watching 13 Reasons Why does not mean that we, as Catholics, should watch it! If something does not help us grow in virtue, then it hinders our ability to be holy – and parents, as shepherds, ought to be vigilant for their flock!

Finally, become a man or woman seeking holiness yourself, and surround your kids with others seeking holiness. No one is perfect, and there are no perfect parents. But is your relationship with God the center of your life? Do your kids ever get to know priests and nuns, or other adults who are passionately in love with God? If we want our kids to become saints, we must strive to be saints ourselves!

One lament that I commonly hear is that parents are heartbroken when their children leave the Catholic Faith. Sadly, it is becoming more common – and it is not always an indication of how well a parent did their job of passing on the Faith. We live in a post-Christian culture, where faith is often ridiculed and our Catholic values are constantly opposed. It’s hard to raise kids in the Faith! Pray and fast for your kids – whether they are young or old, fervent disciples or atheists or anything in-between.

There isn’t one magic formula for being a good shepherd of the Domestic Church. I have seen kids become passionate about the Lord while their parents had no faith at all; I have also seen kids stray from the Lord with very devout parents. But these are some suggestions that I have found successful for parents trying to raise faith-filled kids. Ultimately, our kids – and ourselves – belong to the One Shepherd, Jesus Christ, Who loves us and laid down His life for us!