Lesson from Fr. Paulus | Every Child Is a Gift from God

We hear a lot of talk these days about "human dignity." Some people use that term to promote the idea that everyone should be completely free to do whatever they feel like. But even they don't live like that - if they get kidnapped, they want their kidnappers arrested and put in prison, just as we all do.

Human dignity doesn't mean that everyone should have unlimited freedom. Rather, human dignity means that every single human being has an eternal, everlasting value, just because they exist.

Because of this, we should organize our families, societies, and individual lives in a way that welcomes everyone and gives as many as possible a chance to live their lives to the full. And of course, that means having effective laws that protect the weak, promote justice, and minimize ethical pollution.

But today, in the middle of the Christmas season, as the Church turns our attention to Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, the Holy Family, it is a good time to remind ourselves where this human dignity comes from and what it implies.

Today's First Reading gives us the answer.

Abraham and Sarah were picked by God to be the ancestors of the ancient Israelites, God's Chosen People.

God's action in their life reveals three key insights into human dignity.

Every Person Has a Unique Mission

One of the key insights about human dignity is the most exciting one. Since each one of us has been created directly by God, with the cooperation of our parents, each one of us has a unique mission to accomplish in the world.

In the Bible God is always talking about mission and purpose. When Abram and Sarai received God's promise to be the ancestors of his Chosen People, God actually changed their names to Abraham and Sarah, as a sign of their God-given mission.

In today's Gospel passage, we see the same thing happening. Simeon and Anna have spent their lives serving God, and now they are the only ones who recognize Jesus, and they start spreading the Good News that the Savior has come - this was their unique mission.

Jesus himself, the model for every one of us, has the mission of redeeming the fallen human race. Every single one of us has a God-given mission - it came with being created. And God has given different sets of talents and gifts to equip each of us for our mission.

This mission is our unique way of knowing and loving God - our friendship with him is not generic, but personal, because God made us personal and unique. And if we follow Christ and fulfill this mission, then we will add something to heaven that no one else can add.

Our fulfillment and eternal happiness come from our finding and fulfilling this unique, God-given mission. And when we are baptized, this mission is plugged into Christ's mission - we become his missionaries.

As Pope Paul VI put it: "In God's plan, every man is born to seek self-fulfillment, for every human life is called to some task by God" (Populorum progressio, #15)

The Family - Protector of Human Dignity

And for every one of us, this journey of discovery begins in the family. In the family we gradually learn the truth about who we are, who God is, who we are called to be, and how to use our gifts and talents responsibly.

This is why the Church is always defending the family, just as God designed it from the very beginning of history. God gives us our dignity as human beings, but the family teaches us to live in accordance with that dignity.

And so today, as we contemplate the Holy Family, let's thank the Lord for the great gift of human life and the immeasurable dignity he has bestowed upon it, let's thank him for the wise and beautiful design of the family, in which that life takes shape and grows to maturity, let's thank him for his personal love for each one of us and promise that we will imitate that love in the way we live out our family lives, and let's ask him to show us all how to live our lives to the full and help as many others as possible do the same.