Family time is God time – and so necessary

    How were you able to spend your Christmas holidays?
    I really enjoyed the slower pace that comes after Christmas. I was able to spend Christmas Day with my sister and her family, which is always an enjoyable time. During some of the other days I had a few commitments, but it was a much slower pace. I was able to spend more quiet time, which I could use for prayer and reflection and rest. It was a time for me to get rejuvenated to face a very, very busy next few months, which will have a lot of challenges.
    This is the Year of Family and Faith in the Archdiocese of New Orleans. How did that connect with Christmas?
    During the Christmas holidays, the church is by its very nature committed to and oriented toward family life. The family is where our faith is born and where it grows. It’s very easy to recount the differences between ourselves and the Holy Family. I don’t think any of our families can claim to have given birth to the Messiah! Our families live in a different time and culture and face different challenges. But I think it’s more important to realize the similarities we share with the Holy Family. They sometimes had differences of opinion, as we clearly see in Scripture when Jesus stayed behind in the temple to preach. God has blessed and given favor to our families just as he did to Mary, Joseph and Jesus. God calls us to love and respect one another. He calls us to work out challenges and difficult moments of disappointment in a way that is loving, respectful and forgiving, just as the Holy Family had to do. We are called to include God as part of our family life, just as the Holy Family did. It’s important to honor the family, which is why holidays during the Christmas break and at other times are so vital. Families need to use these times to spend quality time with one another. These are times for fun, social events and also for prayer and attending Mass together.
    How does the Year of Family and Faith in the archdiocese fit in with what Pope Benedict declared as the Year of Faith?
    We had decided to call a Year of Family in the archdiocese before the Holy Father decided to call a Year of Faith. As I’ve said jokingly but truthfully, the Holy Father didn’t check with me on this one – but it’s worked out providentially because we’re able to combine the two. At the last session of the synod on evangelization, the synod fathers specifically said that it is through the family that faith is first and foremost transmitted. It’s a reminder, too, that at the baptism of the child, when the blessing is given to the child’s parents, they are reminded that they are the first and best teachers of the faith. By combining family and faith, it gives us an opportunity to ask families to be more committed to making sure that their children are formed in faith.
    Have you had any experiences recently about the importance of family and faith?
    I was at one of our high schools for Mass right before Christmas, and at the end, the principal got up and urged the students to make sure they lived their faith during the holidays. And then he said something that I thought was quite bold and very honest. He said, “I know, as well as you do, that some of your parents don’t go to church on Sunday. So, why don’t you invite them to go to church on Sunday? Why don’t you invite them back to church?” I admired his comments because they were truthful and accurate, and I truly believe our teenagers and young adults can be instruments of faith for some adults, even their parents.
    Are you pleased by the response to the beginning of the Year of Family and Faith?
    Yes I was. I’m grateful that all of our priests on Holy Family Sunday gave their parishioners the opportunity to recommit themselves and their families to God, and they received a special blessing. That was a great way to start the Year of Family and Faith.
    You’ve made a strong commitment to getting people to re-evaluate how they spend their Sundays. Why is that so important?
    I suspect people will get tired of hearing this refrain, but I believe we need to call all of our families and our society at large to begin reclaiming Sunday as a day of worship at Mass and as a day for quality family time. I don’t live with my head in the sand. I know there are some things that have to happen on Sunday that make the ideal of a commitment-free day for worship and family challenging and sometimes impossible. But, sometimes we choose our own convenience to do certain activities, and these activities may not be necessary. That’s why I am asking our schools and all of our Catholic organizations and institutions to be very careful how they plan for Sundays. Those activities should be ones that bring families together in the parish and do not separate families.
    Do you have special events planned?
    One idea I really like will take place July 27-28, which is right around the feast of St. Ann and St. Joachim, who were the parents of Mary. We will offer a special blessing to all grandparents at Masses that weekend, and we are inviting grandparents to come to church with their grandchildren.
    Questions for Archbishop Aymond may be sent to [email protected]