The Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph
Reading
The Book of Sirach 3: 2-7, 12-14
| 3:2 | Sons, listen to the judgment of your father, and act accordingly, so that you may be saved. |
| 3:3 | For God has honored the father in the sons, and, when seeking the judgment of the mother, he has confirmed it in the children. |
| 3:4 | He who loves God will plead with him on behalf of sins, and will keep himself away from sin, and will be heeded in the prayers of his days. |
| 3:5 | And, like one who stores up treasure, so also is he who honors his mother. |
| 3:6 | He who honors his father will find happiness in his own children, and he will be heeded in the day of his prayer. |
| 3:7 | He who honors his father will live a long life. And he who obeys his father will be a refreshment to his mother. |
| 3:12 | Do not boast in the disgrace of your father; for his shame is not your glory. |
| 3:13 | For the glory of a man is from the honor of his father, and a father without honor is a discredit to the son. |
| 3:14 | Son, support your father in his old age, and do not grieve him in his life. |
or, First Book of Samuel 1: 20- 22, 24- 28
| 1:20 | And it happened that, in the course of days, Hannah conceived and bore a son. And she called his name Samuel, because she had requested him from the Lord. |
| 1:21 | Now her husband Elkanah ascended with his entire house, so that he might immolate to the Lord a solemn sacrifice, with his vow. |
| 1:22 | But Hannah did not go up. For she said to her husband, “I will not go, until the infant has been weaned, and until I may lead him, so that he may appear before the sight of the Lord, and may remain always there.” |
| 1:24 | And after she had weaned him, she brought him with her, along with three calves, and three measures of flour, and a small bottle of wine, and she led him to the house of the Lord at Shiloh. But the boy was still a young child. |
| 1:25 | And they immolated a calf, and they presented the boy to Eli. |
| 1:26 | And Hannah said: “I beg you, my lord, as your soul lives, my lord: I am that woman, who stood before you here, praying to the Lord. |
| 1:27 | I prayed for this child, and the Lord granted to me my petition, which I asked of him. |
| 1:28 | Because of this, I have also lent him to the Lord, for all the days when he shall be lent to the Lord.” And they adored the Lord in that place. And Hannah prayed, and she said |
Second Reading
Colossians 3: 12-21
3:12 Therefore, clothe yourselves like the elect of God: holy and beloved, with hearts of mercy, kindness, humility, modesty, and patience.
3:13 Support one another, and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive one another. For just as the Lord has forgiven you, so also must you do.
3:14 And above all these things have charity, which is the bond of perfection.
3:15 And let the peace of Christ lift up your hearts. For in this peace, you have been called, as one body. And be thankful.
3:16 Let the word of Christ live in you in abundance, with all wisdom, teaching and correcting one another, with psalms, hymns, and spiritual canticles, singing to God with the grace in your hearts.
3:17 Let everything whatsoever that you do, whether in word or in deed, be done all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
3:18 Wives, be submissive to your husbands, as is proper in the Lord.
3:19 Husbands, love your wives, and do not be bitter toward them.
3:20 Children, obey your parents in all things. For this is well-pleasing to the Lord.
3:21 Fathers, do not provoke your children to indignation, lest they lose heart.
or, First Letter of Saint John 3: 1- 2, 21- 24
| 3:1 | See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we would be called, and would become, the sons of God. Because of this, the world does not know us, for it did not know him. |
| 3:2 | Most beloved, we are now the sons of God. But what we shall be then has not yet appeared. We know that when he does appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. |
| 3:21 | Most beloved, if our heart does not reproach us, we can have confidence toward God; |
| 3:22 | and whatever we shall request of him, we shall receive from him. For we keep his commandments, and we do the things that are pleasing in his sight. |
| 3:23 | And this is his commandment: that we should believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as he has commanded us. |
| 3:24 | And those who keep his commandments abide in him, and he in them. And we know that he abides in us by this: by the Spirit, whom he has given to us. |
Gospel
Luke 2: 41- 52
| 2:41 | And his parents went every year to Jerusalem, at the time of the solemnity of Passover. |
| 2:42 | And when he had become twelve years old, they ascended to Jerusalem, according to the custom of the feast day. |
| 2:43 | And having completed the days, when they returned, the boy Jesus remained in Jerusalem. And his parents did not realize this. |
| 2:44 | But, supposing that he was in the company, they went a day’s journey, seeking him among their relatives and acquaintances. |
| 2:45 | And not finding him, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking him. |
| 2:46 | And it happened that, after three days, they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, listening to them and questioning them. |
| 2:47 | But all who listened to him were astonished over his prudence and his responses. |
| 2:48 | And upon seeing him, they wondered. And his mother said to him: “Son, why have you acted this way toward us? Behold, your father and I were seeking you in sorrow.” |
| 2:49 | And he said to them: “How is it that you were seeking me? For did you not know that it is necessary for me to be in these things which are of my Father?” |
| 2:50 | And they did not understand the word that he spoke to them. |
| 2:51 | And he descended with them and went to Nazareth. And he was subordinate to them. And his mother kept all these words in her heart. |
| 2:52 | And Jesus advanced in wisdom, and in age, and in grace, with God and men. |