Holy Family

1A Canticle in steps. Blessed are all those who fear the Lord, who walk in his ways.

2For you will eat by the labors of your hands. Blessed are you, and it will be well with you.

3Your wife is like an abundant vine on the sides of your house. Your sons are like young olive trees surrounding your table.

4Behold, so will the man be blessed who fears the Lord.

5May the Lord bless you from Zion, and may you see the good things of Jerusalem, all the days of your life.

12Therefore, clothe yourselves like the elect of God: holy and beloved, with hearts of mercy, kindness, humility, modesty, and patience. 13Support one another, and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive one another. For just as the Lord has forgiven you, so also must you do. 14And above all these things have charity, which is the bond of perfection. 15And let the peace of Christ lift up your hearts. For in this peace, you have been called, as one body. And be thankful. 16Let the word of Christ live in you in abundance, with all wisdom, teaching and correcting one another, with psalms, hymns, and spiritual canticles, singing to God with the grace in your hearts. 17Let everything whatsoever that you do, whether in word or in deed, be done all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, giving thanks to God the Father through him. 18Wives, be submissive to your husbands, as is proper in the Lord. 19Husbands, love your wives, and do not be bitter toward them. 20Children, obey your parents in all things. For this is well-pleasing to the Lord. 21Fathers, do not provoke your children to indignation, lest they lose heart.

41And his parents went every year to Jerusalem, at the time of the solemnity of Passover. 42And when he had become twelve years old, they ascended to Jerusalem, according to the custom of the feast day. 43And having completed the days, when they returned, the boy Jesus remained in Jerusalem. And his parents did not realize this. 44But, supposing that he was in the company, they went a day’s journey, seeking him among their relatives and acquaintances. 45And not finding him, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking him. 46And it happened that, after three days, they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, listening to them and questioning them. 47But all who listened to him were astonished over his prudence and his responses. 48And upon seeing him, they wondered. And his mother said to him: “Son, why have you acted this way toward us? Behold, your father and I were seeking you in sorrow.” 49And he said to them: “How is it that you were seeking me? For did you not know that it is necessary for me to be in these things which are of my Father?” 50And they did not understand the word that he spoke to them. 51And he descended with them and went to Nazareth. And he was subordinate to them. And his mother kept all these words in her heart. 52And Jesus advanced in wisdom, and in age, and in grace, with God and men.