What is the Holy Family?

• What is the Holy Family?
• Who is the Holy Family?
• Where does the symbol of the Holy Family come from?
• Which saint protects the family?
• What is the importance of the family in the Catholic Church?
• What does the Bible say about the family?
• Why pray to the Holy Family?
• When to pray to the Holy Family?
• When is the feast of the Holy Family and what is it?
• How is the Holy Family represented?
• How is the Holy Family represented at Christmas?

The family has held an important place in the Catholic Church for decades. Indeed, the family is associated with love, joy, protection and other related values. The Holy Family is a strong symbol of the Church and is an example for all Catholics to follow.

What is the Holy Family?

The Holy Family is an example for all Christians, she wants the quality of relationships between members of families, Christian communities and the whole Church to be imbued with the love of God. The Holy Family is an important and benevolent symbol that the Bible and the Church emphasise.

Who makes up the Holy Family?

The Holy Family consists of Jesus of Nazareth and his parents, Mary and Joseph. The name Holy Family is given to them, and they are held up as an example by the Catholic Church for all Catholic families. Mary and Joseph, listening to God, responded favourably to his request to be the parents of Jesus, and in this they form the Holy Family.

Where does the symbol of the Holy Family come from?

The Holy Family of Christ refers to the earthly family of Jesus and his parents, Mary and Joseph.

Historically, this devotion originated in the mid-seventeenth century. A Canadian religious named François de Laval, having heard of the miracles of Cotignac, decided to found the first parish bearing the name of the Holy Family on the Island of Orleans. François de Laval then founded the Confraternity of the Holy Family.

This cult then spread throughout the Catholic Church in the 19th century with the support of Pope Leo XIII.

Which saint protects the family?

St. Joseph is the patron saint par excellence, protecting and providing for the family. As Joseph was the father of Jesus, his role as patron saint is the same. 

How important is the family in the Catholic Church?

Within the Church, parents have a sacred duty to raise their children in love, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, to teach them to love and help one another, to observe God's commandments and to be law-abiding citizens wherever they live. The virtues of the Holy Family are: adoration, joy, thanksgiving, wonder at the mysteries of God and many other virtues.

What does the Bible say about the family?

The family is ordained by God. According to the Bible, it is the most important cell in time and in eternity. Even before we were born on earth, we belonged to a family.

Why pray to the Holy Family?

Thanks to the Holy Trinity, composed of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, we know how much Love is born and lives in relationship.

Beyond our prayers to Jesus, the Virgin Mary and Joseph, to pray to the Holy Family is to contemplate and take as a model this place of love. Indeed, with the earthly family of Jesus, we observe this conjugal, parental and filial love which allows each one to blossom and to make the presence of God grow each day within our homes. 

Entrusting our families to the Holy Family of Nazareth is a way of sanctifying our family relationships so that they are strengthened in this love that respects and liberates.

When to pray to the Holy Family?

Praying to the Holy Family can be done at any time, the prayers help to attract protection to one's family and to bring peace and love between family members.

When is the Feast of the Holy Family and what is it?

The Feast of the Holy Family is celebrated at a Mass on the Sunday following the Feast of Christmas, i.e. the Feast of the Nativity; if Christmas falls on a Sunday, it is celebrated on 30 December. The Catholic Church bases itself on the life of Jesus and his parents, Mary and Joseph, offering them as models to Christian families, who invoke their assistance.

This feast was not extended to the universal Church until 1921, following the cult of St Joseph in the 15th century.

How is the Holy Family depicted?

There are many artistic representations of the Holy Family, including paintings, sculptures and other works. They form the ideal family in Christian symbolism: a loving couple with a child, living modestly and honestly from their work, respectful of laws and social conventions. The Holy Family is most often depicted in the following way: Joseph and Mary looking at Jesus in a benevolent way.

How is the Holy Family depicted at Christmas?

During the Christmas season, the Holy Family is more than present in Christian homes, in fact, the presence of a nativity scene is an important symbol and an indispensable element of decoration for every Christian. The Holy Family can be represented in the form of a nativity scene, a Christmas decoration such as a candle or a picture frame featuring them.