A reading from the book of Ecclesiasticus (3:2-6, 12-14)
The Lord honours the father above his children
and upholds the rights of a mother over her children.
Whoever respects a father atones for sins,
whoever honours a mother is like someone amassing a fortune.
Whoever respects a father will have joy in children
and will be heard at the time of prayer.
Long life comes to anyone who honours a father;
whoever obeys the Lord makes a mother happy.
My child, support your father in his old age,
do not grieve him as long as he lives.
Even if his mind should fail, show him sympathy;
in your full strength do not dishonour him;
for kindness to a father will not be forgotten
but will serve as reparation for your sins.
The wisdom of Ben Sira, contained in the book of Ecclesiasticus, presents a wealth of moral teaching. The material in this reading might be seen as a commentary on the commandment: ‘Honour your father and your mother so that you may live long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.’ (Exodus 20:12) Ben Sira spells out some consequences of fidelity to this commandment. In particular honour paid to a father leads to ‘long life’. The consideration to be shown to an elderly father, and the invitation to ‘sympathy’ if ‘his mind should fail’ are ever relevant.
Psalm 128 (127) The psalm lists the blessings of family.
A reading from the letter of saint Paul to the Colossians (3:12-21)
As the chosen of God, then, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves in heartfelt compassion, in generosity and humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with one another; forgive one another if anyone has a complaint against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you do the same. Over all these, put on love, the bond of perfection. And may the peace of Christ reign in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. Always be grateful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly. Teach and advise one another in all wisdom. With gratitude sing psalms and hymns and inspired songs to God in your hearts; and whatever you say or do, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and do not be sharp with them. Children, be obedient to your parents always, for that is pleasing to the Lord. Parents, do not provoke your children so that they do not lose heart.
Awareness of being ‘chosen’ and being ‘forgiven’ is strong motivation for Christian conduct. The various virtues listed are compared to clothing, and over all these the Christian should ‘put on love’ (agape), which is described as ‘the bond of perfection’. General exhortations that ‘the peace of Christ’ should ‘reign in your hearts’ and that ‘the word of Christ’ should ‘dwell in you richly’ are followed by invitations to gratitude. The passage concludes with specific advice to ‘wives’, ‘husbands’, ‘children’ and ‘parents’, and the contemporary convention that wives should ‘be subject’ to husbands is not challenged.
A reading from the holy gospel according to Matthew (2:13-15, 19-23)
After the wise men had left, see, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Get up. Take the child and his mother, flee into Egypt and stay there until I tell you, for Herod intends to search for the child to destroy him.’ So Joseph got up and, taking the child and his mother by night, left for Egypt and stayed there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying:
I called my son out of Egypt.
When Herod had died, see, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt saying, ‘Get up. Take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child’s life are dead.’ So Joseph got up and, taking the child and his mother, went to the land of Israel. But when he learnt that Archelaus was king of Judaea in place of his father, Herod, he was afraid to go there, and, being warned in a dream, he withdrew to the region of Galilee. There he settled in a town called Nazareth so that what had been spoken through the prophets should be fulfilled:
‘He will be called a Nazarene’.
The scenes narrated in Matthew’s infancy stories all have Joseph as the principal character. The two scenes which make up this gospel reading are each concluded with a fulfilment citation, one from the prophet Hosea, and the second, ‘He will be called a Nazarene’, of uncertain origin. Once again Joseph is the receiver of a divine message brought by an angel, firstly to flee to Egypt to avoid Herod’s massacre of the children, and then, eventually, to return from there. The report of the actual massacre is reserved for the feast of the Holy Innocents. The story here, on the one hand, has Jesus relive the experience of Israel, of descent into Egypt and exodus from there, and, on the other, shows the family living the millennial experience of refugees, as the most vulnerable people are driven from their homes by the threat of violence. The Son of God quickly becomes a victim of oppression and injustice.
What is the purpose of the fulfilment citations in Matthew?
Consider the present significance of the story of the flight into Egypt.