St James Catholic Church

Dear Parishioners,

On the Sunday after Christmas, we honor the Holy Family and hold them up as a model for our families from the start. Jesus, Mary, and Joseph had to deal with hardships, uncertainty, and even danger, but together they placed their trust in God and grew ever stronger in their bond with each other. We too are called to trust in the Lord as we face the trials and difficulties of our own lives.

 Just think of it. The Holy Family, with Jesus still in his mother’s womb, were required to leave their home in Nazareth to travel to Bethlehem, in Judea, at the order of its Roman emperor. Then, soon after Jesus was born, they needed to flee to Egypt in the middle of the night due to the murderous intent of the Judean King. Joseph, Mary, and their newborn baby become refugees in a foreign land, owning nothing but the clothes on their back, with no job or money, living among people with a different culture, religion, ethnicity, and language; reliant on God and their new neighbors for food, shelter, and mercy. As an adult, Jesus would tell his disciples that those who welcome the stranger will inherit the kingdom of heaven. He knows of what he speaks. When he was an infant, he and his family were the strangers in need of welcome. These are the conditions that God chose to be born into. May God be with us in this reality today as we continue our Christmas celebration. May our families be consecrated in the love of the Holy Family.

Love, Peace, Joy,

Fr. Bob