When Things Are Out of Our Control

This is a computer-generated transcription that has been included to make the homily searchable.  It has not been verified by the author. 

“When the Magi had departed, behold the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt and stay there until I tell you, Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him.”  What was that like for this family, the Holy Family, to get that sudden message in a dream? There can be times in which life seems out of control. Things can happen suddenly and suddenly it feels like, as I say, things are out of our control.  And already St Joseph had been in Nazareth, preparing a place for this child that was to be born. And then, they had to go to Bethlehem. And so, a great change in his plans, where Jesus was born. And they had perhaps just been settling down there in Bethlehem, and then suddenly there is this terrifying dream about a powerful king, King Herod wanting to kill their little child. Sometimes we can think that, well, if I do what God wants, things will go smoothly. I’m trying to do His will, so He’s going to take care of everything. But we see in in this gospel an example of people who are completely doing God’s will. And yet, the road was not a smooth road, and they had to trust that, even though things seemed out of control, that God was going to guide them through this. Even though things seem out of control, nothing is out of God’s hands. It might be out of our hands, out of our control, but it’s not out of God’s control. And what this Gospel of Matthew is showing is that even this thing, which seems so terrible and unexpected and completely, completely kind of overthrowing all their plans, and yet, even this was part of God’s designs, which he had prepared many centuries, which he had announced many centuries ago. But what was that like for this family to live that, for St Joseph to receive that announcement that night? And so, I want to share with you a meditation we’ve been in this season, sharing a lot of meditations from Maria Valtorta, “The Gospel as It Was Revealed to Me”. And I want to share the one about this moment. And so, the setting is that the shepherds have found a home for the Holy Family in Bethlehem, so they’re staying in a home of someone else there and so and it’s been a number of months between the birth of Jesus and the Magi. According to this it wasn’t right away, but it was months later that the Magi came. So, the Magi havejust come, and then this is where this begins itt was just shortly after that. “It is night, Joseph is sleeping in this little bed in this very small room, the peaceful sleep of a man after a hard day’s honest and diligent work, I can see him in the dark room because a thin ray of moonlight filters in through the window shutters left ajar, either because Joseph is too warm in his little room, or because he wants to be woken by the early rays of light at daybreak and get up at once. He is lying on one side and smiling at some vision he sees in a dream, but his smile turns into expression of anxiety. He is now sighing deeply, as if he had a nightmare, and he wakes up with a start. He sits up on his bed, rubs his eyes and looks around. He looks at the little window where the feeble light comes in. It is the dead of night, but he grasps his robe, which is lying at the bottom of the bed and still sitting on the bed, he pulls it on over the white short sleeved tunic he is wearing next to his skin. He pulls the blankets away, puts his feet on the floor and looks for his sandals. He puts them on and ties them. He stands up and goes towards the door, facing his bed, not the one at the side of his bed, leading into the large room where the Magi were received. He knocks very gently, a very soft knocking with the tips of his fingers. He must have heard a voice asking him to enter, because he opens the door carefully and sets it ajar without making any noise. Before going to the door, he has lit a small, single-flame oil lamp and lights his way with it. He goes in. The room is a little larger than his own, and there is a low bed in it, near a cradle with a night lamp in a corner, the flickering flame of what seems like a little star with a soft golden light that allows one to see without disturbing anyone sleeping. But Mary is not sleeping. She is kneeling near the cradle in her light-colored dress and is praying, watching Jesus, who is sleeping peacefully. Jesus is the same age as I saw him in the vision of the Magi, a child, about one year old, beautiful, rosy and fair haired. He is sleeping with his curly head sunk in the pillow and a clenched fist under his chin. “Are you not sleeping?” Joseph asked her in a low, surprised voice. “Why not? Is Jesus not well?” “Oh, no, he’s all right. I’m praying. Later I’ll sleep. Why have you come Joseph?” Mary speaks kneeling on the same spot. Joseph speaks in a very low voice, so as not to awaken a child, but it is an excited voice. “We must go away from here at once. It must be at once. Prepare the coffer and the sack with everything you can put in them. I’ll prepare the rest. I’ll take as much as I can. We will flee at dawn. I would go even sooner, but I must speak to the landlady.” “But why this flight?” “I will tell you later, it’s because of Jesus. An angel said to me, take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. We must not waste any time. I’m going to prepare what I can.” There is no need to tell Mary not to waste time as soon as she heard Joseph mention an angel, Jesus in flight, she understood that her creature was in danger, and she jumped to her feet. Her face whiter than wax, holding one hand against her heart, completely distressed, and she began to move about, quick and agile, laying the clothes in the coffer and in a large sack which she placed on her bed, which was still untouched.  Though she was disheartened, she does not lose her head. She acts quickly but orderly. Now and again when passing near the cradle, she looks at the child, who is sleeping calmly. “Do you need help?” Joseph asks, now and again, peeping into the room through the door ajar. “No, thank you,” replies Mary every time. Only when her sack is full and is obviously very heavy, she calls Joseph to help her close it and take it off the bed. But Joseph does not want any help. He prefers to do it himself, and he takes the long sack into his little room. “Shall I also take the woolen blanket, asked Mary?” “Take as much as you can. We will lose the rest. Do take as much as you can. Things will be useful because we will have to stay away for a long time, Mary,” Joseph is very sad in saying so, one can easily imagine how Mary feels. She folds her blankets and Joseph sighing deeply. Joseph ties the blankets with the rope, and while doing so, he says, “We shall leave the quilts and the mats. Even if I take three donkeys, I cannot overload them, we will have a long and uncomfortable journey, partly in the mountains and in the desert. Cover Jesus, well, the nights will be cold, both up in the mountains and in the desert. I have taken the gifts of the Magi, because they will be very useful down there. I am going to spend all the money I have to buy two donkeys. We can’t send them back, so I will have to buy them. I am going now without awaiting dawn. I know where to find them. Finish preparing everything.” And he goes out. Mary gathers a few more things, then looking at Jesus, she goes out and comes back with some little tunics which appear to be still damp. Perhaps they were washed the day before. She folds them, wraps them up in a cloth, and adds them to the other things. There is nothing else. She looks around, and in a corner, she sees one of Jesus’ toys, a little sheep carved in wood. She picks it up sobbing andkisses it. On the wood, there are traces of Jesus’ little teeth and the ears of the little sheep are all nibbled. Mary caresses the thing without any value, a plain piece of light wood, which, however, is of great value to her because it tells her of Joseph’s love for Jesus and speaks to her of her child. She adds it to the other things placed on the closed coffer. Now there is really nothing else except Jesus in the little cradle. Mary thinks she should prepare the child. She goes to the cradle and shakes it a little to wake up the baby, but he whimpers a little, turns around and continues to sleep. Mary pats his curls gently. Jesus opens his little mouth, yawning. Mary bends down and kisses his cheek. Jesus wakes up completely. He opens his eyes, sees his mother and smiles and stretches his little hands towards her breast. Yes, love of your mommy. Yes, your milk before the usual time, but you are always ready to suck your mommy’s breast, my holy little lamb. Jesus, laughs and plays, kicking his little feet out of the blankets, moving his arms happily in a typical childish style so beautiful to see. He pushes his feet against his mommy’s stomach. He arches his back, leaning his fair head on her breast, then throws himself back and laughs holding with his hands the laces that tie Mary’s dress to her neck, endeavoring to open it, he looks most beautiful in his little linen shirt, plump and rosy as a flower. Mary bends down and in that position, looking over the cradle, as if in protection. She smiles and cries at the same time while the child prattles, uttering the words which are not words of all little children, and among them, the word mommy is repeated very clearly. He looks at her, surprised to see her crying. He stretches one little hand towards the shining traces of tears, and it gets wet while patting her face and very gracefully, he leans, once again, on his mother’s breast. He clings to it and pats it with one with his hand. Mary kisses his hair, picks him up in her arms, sits him down and dresses him. His little woolen tunic has now been put on him, and his sandals have been tied on his feet. She nurses him, and Jesus sucks avidly his mother’s good milk. And when he feels that only a little is coming from her right breast, he looks for the left one, laughing while doing so and looking up at his mother. Then he falls asleep on her breast. Mary rises very slowly and lays him on the quilt, on her bed. She covers him with her mantle. She goes back to the cradle and folds its little blankets. She wonders whether she ought to take the little mattress as well. It’s so small it can be taken. She puts it together with the pillow near the other things already on the coffer, and she cries over the empty cradle, poor mother persecuted in her little creature, Joseph comes back. “Are you ready? Is Jesus ready? Have you taken his blankets and his little bed? We can’t take his cradle, but he must have at least his little mattress, poor baby whose death they are seeking.” Joseph shouts Mary, while she grasps his arm, yes, Mary, his death. Herod wants him dead because he is afraid of him, that filthy beast, because of his human kingdom, he is afraid of that, this innocent child. I do not know what he will do when he realizes that he has escaped, but we shall be far away by that time. I don’t think he will revenge himself by seeking Him as far as Galilee. It would be very difficult for him to find out that we are Galileans, least of all, that we are from Nazareth and who we are exactly, unless satan helps him to thank him for being his faithful servant. But if that should happen, God will help us just the same. Don’t cry, Mary; to see you crying is a greater pain for me than having to go into exile.” “Forgive me, Joseph, I am not crying for myself or for the few things I am losing. I am crying for you. You have already had to sacrifice yourself so much, and now once again, you will have no customers, no home. How much I am costing you? Joseph, how much?” “No Mary, you do not cost me. You comfort me always. Don’t worry about the future. We have the gifts of the Magi that will help us for the first days. Later, I will find some work. A good workman will make his way, will always make his way. You have seen what happened here. I don’t have enough time for all the work I have. “I know, but who will relieve your home sickness for your native land?” “And what about you? Who will relieve your longing for your home, which is so dear to you?” “Jesus will, having him. I have what I had there.”  And Joseph responds, “and I, having Jesus, have my native land in which I had hope up to some months ago. I have my God. You can see that I lose nothing of what is dear to me. Above all things, the only important thing is to save Jesus, and then we have everything, even if we should never see this sky again, or this country or the even dearer country of Galilee, we shall always have everything, because we shall have him. Come Mary, it’s starting to dawn. It’s time to say goodbye to our hostess and to load our things. Everything will be all right.” Mary gets up obediently. She puts her hand on her mantle while Joseph makes up a last parcel and goes out with it. Mary lifts the child, gently, wraps him in a shawl, and clasps him to her heart. She looks at the walls that have given her a hospitality for some months, and she touches them caressingly with one hand, happy house that deserves to be loved and blessed by Mary. She goes out through Joseph’s little room, into the large room. The landlady, in tears, kisses her goodbye, and lifting the edge of the shawl, she kisses the forehead of the child who is sleeping calmly. They go down the outside steps. The first light of dawn enables them to see faintly in the dim light; three little donkeys can be seen. The strongest is loaded with the goods and possessions. The other two are saddled. Joseph is busy fastening the coffer and bundles on the pack saddle of the first one, I can see his carpenter tools tied in a bundle on top of the sack. After more tears and goodbyes, Mary mounts the little donkey, while the landlady is holding Jesus in her arms and kissing him once again, she then hands him back to Mary. Joseph too mounts after tying his donkey to the one loaded with the goods, in order to be free to hold the reins of Mary’s donkey. The flight begins while Bethlehem, still dreaming of the extraordinary scene of the Magi, is sleeping peacefully, unaware of what is impending over it, and the vision ends thus.”  So, this gospel reminds us that the accounts of the Nativity are not a myth, but their history of real people. And the book, I won’t read all that part to not be too long, but the book goes on to focus on several lessons of this moment. One was that the Holy Family was truly human, and so they had feelings. They had true feelings, and they also that they weren’t spared suffering that, as we said, obeying God in this world often entails many sufferings and trials. And also, on this feast of the Holy Family, it’s a lesson of the chastity between Mary and Joseph. And so on this feast, we ask the Holy Family to bless our families and to bless all families, especially families going through many trials. And for all of us, this gospel is a reminder when life is hard, when unexpected things happen, when it’s out of our control, to help us to trust in the Lord; that nothing is out of His control and to abandon ourselves to His care. And so that’s something we can do right now in this Mass with whatever anxieties we might be carrying, to abandon ourselves and abandon those we love and entrusting them to our Lord, with that little prayer, Jesus, we trust in you, Amen. 

KEYWORDS / PHRASES:
Matthew 2:13-15, 19-23