Within The Family One First Discovers Who They Are

Family is essential to human identity. The book of Genesis tells us that, “A man leaves his father and his mother and cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh.” (Genesis 2:24) From the very beginning of creation this coming together of one man and one woman to form a new oneness was written in the natural law. This oneness, this family, brings forth new life. Within the family one first discovers who they are. As essential as the family is to human identity, it should come then as no surprise that Christ, God incarnate, chose to enter humanity in the context of a family. In doing so he sanctified the family providing the model for the domestic Church.

The Escape to Egypt

Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there till I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” And he rose and took the child and his mother by night, and departed to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt have I called my son.” Matthew 2 : 13-15

The Return from Egypt

But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child’s life are dead.” And he rose and took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus reigned over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream he withdrew to the district of Galilee. And he went and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, “He shall be called a Nazarene.” Matthew 2 : 19-23

Scriptural Analysis – The Escape To Egypt

The tone of Matthew’s Gospel changes with the introduction of the Holy Family’s flight into Egypt. The Gospel started with the triumphant announcement of the new Davidic king in the genealogy, then it focussed on the acceptance of Christ by Joseph and then the visit of the Magi. The tone of the Gospel now turns to one of terror. The family is exiled to Egypt and many will suffer in Israel.

Egypt was a fitting place for the Holy Family to flee. It was still under Roman control but not under the jurisdiction of Herod. It was also a traditional place for Jewish refugees:

“Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam; but Jeroboam arose, and fled into Egypt, to Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.” (1 Kings 11:40)
“Finally he met a miserable end. Accused before Aretas the ruler of the Arabs, fleeing from city to city, pursued by all men, hated as a rebel against the laws, and abhorred as the executioner of his country and his fellow citizens, he was cast ashore in Egypt.” (2 Maccabees 5:8)
“And when King Jehoiakim, with all his warriors and all the princes, heard his words, the king sought to put him to death; but when Uri′ah heard of it, he was afraid and fled and escaped to Egypt.” (Jeremiah 26:21)

As a result, there was a large Jewish population already present in Egypt.

Additionally, the flight of the Holy Family to Egypt on the account of a wicked pagan tyrant killing every male child recalls the Exodus and Pharo’s attempt to kill all the Hebrew male children. This is not the only parallel between Jesus and Moses. Both individuals were saved from death as a child: Moses grew up in an Egyptian home while Jesus sought refuge in Egypt. Matthew’s retelling of this event would inform readers that there was going to be something important in the future of Jesus as God protected him as a child just as he did Moses.

The flight of the Holy Family into Egypt also links Jesus with the Exodus. The prophet Hosea wrote, “When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son.” (Hosea 11:1) While this passage looks back to the founding of the nation of Israel, Matthew sees this passage pointing to Jesus as well.

Scriptural Analysis – The Return From Egypt

Upon the death of Herod, an angel appears to Joseph in a dream. This should spark throughs of the patriarch Joseph who was known for having and interpreting dreams about the future in Egypt (see Genesis 37:5-10) Joseph the husband of Mary is also associated with dreams:

An angel appeared in his dream telling him to take Mary into his home. (Matthew 1:20)
An angel appeared in his dream telling him to take Mary and Jesus and flee into Egypt. (Matthew 2:13)
When Herod passed, an angel appeared telling Joseph to return to Galilee and avoid the area of Judea. (Matthew 2:20)

There are other parallels as well between the patriarch Joseph and Joseph the husband of Mary.

Both Josephs have fathers named Jacob.
The patriarch Joseph – “This is the history of the family of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was shepherding the flock.” (Genesis 37:1-2)
Joseph, the husband of Mary – “Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born.” (Matthew 1:16)
Both Josephs are persecuted.
The patriarch Joseph was sold into slavery – “Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites.” (Genesis) 37:27
Joseph, the husband of Mary, was forced to flee from Herod – “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there till I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” (Matthew 2:13)
Both Josephs go to Egypt.
The patriarch Joseph was sold to Egypt – “Meanwhile the Midianites had sold him in Egypt to Poti-phar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard.” (Genesis 37:36)
Joseph, the husband of Mary, took his family to Egypt – “And he rose and took the child and his mother by night, and departed to Egypt.” (Matthew 2:14)
In feeling to Egypt, both Josephs ultimately save their families.
The patriarch Joseph saves his family from starvation – “As for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.” (Genesis 50:20)
Joseph, the husband of Mary, saves Jesus from Herod’s plot – “For those who sought the child’s life are dead.” (Matthew 2:20)

The words of the angel are almost verbatim what was said to Moses, “Go back to Egypt; for all the men who were seeking your life are dead.” (Exodus 4:19) This is yet another connection Matthew makes showing that Jesus is a new Moses. It death of the Pharaoh who sought Moses’s life made it safe for him to return to Egypt. The death of Herod the Great makes it safe for Jesus to return to Israel.

However, it was not safe to return to the region of Judea. Archelaus was rulling over Judea in place of Herod. Herod the Great ruled for the Romans as king over all of Palestine. Upon Herod the Great’s death, Rome appointed his son Archelaus to rule from Jerusalem as ethnarch over the regions of Samaria, Judea, and Idumea. Archelaus’s reign had a violent start. His army was unleashed on Passover pilgrims in Jerusalem killing three thousand of them. This sparked revolts all over Palestine. Thus the angel told Joseph to take his family to Galilee which was in the north and not under the control of Archelaus.

The family settled in Nazareth, a small village in the Galilean hills. At most, it had 480 people at the start of the 1st century. Nazareth was not known for anything. However, Matthew sees significance since the text says he will be called a Nazorean. This reference marks the 4h fulfillment quotation of Matthew.

However, this is an interesting quotation. There is no Old Testament passage that directly says the Messiah will be a Nazorean. Upon closer examination, we see that Matthew uses the word, prophets, which indicates he is referring to a theme in the prophetic words and thus he is pointing to the theme of the messianic branch. The Hebrew word for Nazareth and nester, which means branch, are similar. We see the prophet Isaiah referring to the branch in his Messianic prophecies, “There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.” (Isaiah 11:1)

Daily Application

In his 1994 Letter To Families, Pope Saint John Paul II beautifully wrote about the incarnation of Christ:

In the Gospel Jesus offers a supreme confirmation: “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son” (Jn 3:16). The only-begotten Son, of one substance with the Father, “God from God and Light from Light”, entered into human history through the family: “For by his incarnation the Son of God united himself in a certain way with every man. He laboured with human hands… and loved with a human heart. Born of Mary the Virgin, he truly became one of us and, except for sin, was like us in every respect”. If in fact Christ “fully discloses man to himself”, he does so beginning with the family in which he chose to be born and to grow up. We know that the Redeemer spent most of his life in the obscurity of Nazareth, “obedient” (Lk 2:51) as the “Son of Man” to Mary his Mother, and to Joseph the carpenter. Pope Saint John Paul II – Letter To Families – Paragraph 2

Normally celebrated on the first Sunday after Christmas, the Feast of the Holy Family celebrates the family that is Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. Individually, Jesus, Mary, and Joseph all have their own feast days. Yet the church still sees the need to have a feast day dedicated to the three of them as a family. That is how important the familial aspect of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph is. Additionally, it follows right after Christmas showing the central role of the family in the incarnation.

Consider for a moment that Jesus could have entered this world in any number of ways. He could have appeared as a full-grown man entering directly into public ministry. He could have appeared as a conquering king or as the high priest. The fact that Jesus chose to enter the world as a baby, born into a family, learned the family business, and labored for years in relative anonymity, is not insignificant. Family is fundamental to Jesus’s identity and God’s plan for humanity.

Yet, we live in a world where the family is under constant attack. We are told that family is whatever we decide it is. There is no objective truth, no objective reality which defines family. Two moms, two dads, three adults, these are all just fine. Feel like you are entitled to a child, mix it up in a lab, and hire a surrogate to carry and deliver the baby. Don’t want the commitment of marriage, that is fine. You can still hook up, get pregnant, and then co-parent the child. None of this conforms to God’s plan and design for the family.

It should come as no surprise then that so many young people struggle today with mental health and numerous other issues. If the family is where one first discovers who they are if we redefine the family that will consequently have impacts upon the ability of our youth to discover their true identity. We can’t break with God’s design and then act surprised when we see so many negative consequences of those choices.

We must get back to an understanding of family rooted in the natural law enlightened by revelation. This is the understanding of family embodied by the Holy Family. Only then will we truly understand who we are as the beloved sons and daughters of God. It is only then that we can be in right relation with one another.

Pope Saint John Paul II once said, “As the family goes, so goes the nation, and so goes the whole world in which we live.” Let us work to strengthen the true understanding of family as ordained by God. Let us commit ourselves to action in the political realm that uplifts and protects a traditional understanding of family. It is only when we work to strengthen and support the family, that we can begin to truly reChristianize the culture.

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