As Church, we are always looking for ways to encourage our families: husbands and wives, mothers and fathers, and children. It is because we believe that the vocation of married people is special; it is integrally linked to God’s plan in many wonderful ways. This has always been clear to us from the very beginning; just re-read the Book of Genesis. More than ever, this book of Sacred Scripture should be read, studied, and used for prayer and meditation.
I know that the Book of Genesis has received a lot of negative criticism in our post-Christian world. Nevertheless, this segment of the Word of God continues to reveal to us profound truths from the mind of God on the value of life, the dignity of man and woman, the body, and the foundation of marriage itself. These truths cannot change. They are eternal. The truth remains the same down through the centuries. No one has the authority to alter the unchangeable teaching of God. It is written into the very nature of things and cannot be altered.
Just a few weeks ago this year, the Catholic University of America Press came out with the first volume of the writings of Cardinal Karol Wojtyla/St. Pope John Paul II. It is titled Person and Act and Related Essays. This is a scholarly work of 680 pages. This is the first of a series of critical editions (with commentaries) of the writings of a saintly and revered pope, that many now call St. John Paul, the Great. History will prove this attribute correct. Prophetically, St. Pope John Paul II made clear the mind of the Church on the dignity and sanctity of Catholic families.
Christians, taught by the Word of God made flesh, treasure fathers. Clearly, many men have received the holy vocation to be husbands and fathers. In this context, they are called to holiness, and they become instruments and means of holiness as they diligently and devotedly work to bring salvation to their wives and children.
God desires holy fathers. God, the Father, gently reveals Himself as the Father of fathers. St. Joseph, the patron of fathers, is a model of holiness. This is the year of St. Joseph. Let us pray for holy fathers. We thank fathers on this special day for all that they do, and we pray that all fathers will recognize the dignity of their calling and have the strength to live it out courageously in our difficult times. God’s grace and love will always be enough for those who call upon Him.
I remember hearing St. John Paul II speak from his window over St. Peter’s Square almost forty years ago. He solemnly warned the city of Rome and the world of a “fatherless society.” What he meant are fathers who fail to live out their vocation. Holy fathers are more important than ever. God bless all fathers!
Yours in Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, Father Mark G. Mazza, Pastor