Godly choices about family

There are layers of wisdom in the very beginning of the passage from Sirach provided as one of the options for today’s first reading (Sirach 3:2-6, 12-14):

God sets a father in honor over his children;
a mother’s authority he confirms over her sons.

On one level, this addresses the authority of parents over children.

There is a more fundamental level to this verse, however: not just that parents have authority but that it is God who establishes that authority.

Families are not simply a matter of human convention or individual whims: that is the way of confusion, selfishness, and a never-ending series of power games.

All of our choices with regard to family need to be rooted in God, not in the passing preferences of individuals or cultures.

All of our choices with regard to family – yours and mine, whether we are married, single, parents, children, or childless – must be rooted in God through discernment, prayer, and the seeking of His truth in revelation.

None of us are perfect as individuals. Likewise, our family situations may not be perfect either, because of circumstances beyond our control, bad choices we have made, or a combination of the two.

But God is perfect, God is love, and God reaches out to us with His grace, inviting us to follow the path of Truth as we continue through life in this world and to make choices about family based on Him: His love, His truth, and His grace.

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, be merciful to me - a sinner.