Build your Family to resist Demolition!
Homily preached December 26, 2021
by Monsignor Michael Deering

Fifty-Six years ago ... in the year 1965 ...  a group of Construction Engineers designed and built the original Holy Spirit Church on this spot here in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.  

The Catholic Faith Community grew and grew until the original 350 seat Church was no longer big enough to serve the people.

So in 2008, the original Church was demolished by a group of Demolition Engineers who were immediately followed by a group of Construction Engineers who built this new 1000 seat Church that serves us so well today.

It’s here in our own Church history that we see the actions of two groups of Engineers:

Construction Engineers ... who build up ... and ...

Demolition Engineers ... who tear down.

These two opposing forces worked very well together to serve the community.

But this is not always the case.

For example ... in times of war ... Demolition Crews had one purpose ... to destroy the enemy bridges and buildings with the intention of never building them back.

Yes, the forces of Construction and Destruction can be enemies of one another ...

and so it is with the forces of Good and Evil ... God and the Devil.

God created everything ... and everything God created was good.

The Devil, who lost his union with God by refusing to serve Him ...

now acts in opposition to everything that God has created.

And this includes the pinnacle of God’s Creation the Human Person and the Human Family.

God created Human Persons in His image and likeness.

You see, God established the Human Family as the building block for the structure of Society.     And when each family is well and in place,

it contributes to the strength of the entire social order …

making the whole community very resistant to

any outside forces being able to take it down.

But if the building blocks, the human families, become broken or go missing, then the strength of the social order is jeopardized and we are at risk of collapse.

The devil knows this and so he has been working throughout the ages ...

to take our world apart.     How does He do it?     Just as Demolition Engineers do!

He takes it apart ... piece by piece … family by family.

God is a God of order and structure.

The devil, who is opposed to God, is about disorder and destruction.

In the very first chapter of God’s book, the Bible,

we hear how God created order out of chaos.

And then, throughout all the remaining books of the Bible ...

we hear God calling His people, who have become disordered & divided ...

to have union with Him and one another to reclaim order.

But, sadly, the devil never ceases striving to destroy the work of God.

And in the last 60 years, the devil has been especially successful in bringing down our society … by his insidious attack on ... the Human family.

Everywhere you look there is division and discord and dysfunction and divorce. Every day, the news highlights just how widespread is the assault on our families.

Recall how the  50 year of marriage our former Governor ended when he became romantically involve with someone else’s wife. Oh, the hurt ... to him, to her and the whole community.

a steady stream of accusations of sinful behavior continue to be made against: actors, producers, musicians, conductors, congressmen, athletes, coaches, educators and church leaders ...

which is destroying families and futures ... and harming the whole community.

This is no small thing.

The devil is having a heyday and we as a society are suffering greatly.

If the human family, which is the building block of society, continues to breakdown, we as a society will eventually collapse. Just like the walls of our original Church … once enough pieces are broken or missing, the whole wall will crumble.

What can we do?     We need to pray to turn this thing around.

God loves us and wants us to flourish in this world, so we have to choose to listen to His wisdom ... and follow his guidelines for the proper order of Human life.

God designed the human family to be “a community of life and love” ...

consisting of a Father, a Mother and the fruit of their love … their Children.

The parents are to live together in a lifelong covenant bond ...

caring for one another in mutual respect and teaching their children ...

to reverence, respect and love ... God and others.

This is God’s design; it is God’s law.

In fact, He gave one whole commandment to assist Parents in maintaining order in their family ...:  

His 4^th Commandment declares: “You shall honor your Father and Mother.”

Sirach affirmed this in his writing proclaimed today saying, “God sets a father in

honor over his children; a mother’s authority he confirms over her sons.

God’s expectation is that there be reverence & respect, peace & harmony in the home. Then the family is strong and healthy and a solid building block of society.

Today, we celebrate the Holy Family … Jesus, Mary and Joseph.

It’s the model for all families to follow.

Maria VonTrapp, from the Sound of Music, once said, “If more fathers would be like Joseph, and more mothers would be like Mary, more children would be like Jesus!”

A popular saying as I was growing up was:

“The family that prays together, stays together.”

Well, it’s a saying that is just as true today as ever.   So simple ... yet so ignored.

How about your family ... do you pray together?       At home?     In Church?  

When a family prays together ... it’s as if they were adding a layer of cement ...

between each family member and God!

What would an extra layer of cement do to all the joints of our Church?

Why, it’d be so strong that even a tornado wouldn’t knock it down!

          Well, Prayer is the cement that keeps our families standing together.

Let’s recognize that we’re in a battle ... with two forces tugging on your family.

One is God, who is good, and who promises harmony and order and lasting peace!

The other is the devil, who is evil, and whose temptations are destructive lies.

More than ever before, families need to draw together … to one another and to God … to protect themselves from the attacks of the devil. We need to put up our guard and turn away from every temptation that can weaken or break family unity.

Today, as we honor the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph,

let’s recommit ourselves to having unity & harmony in the home.

And, let’s call upon the Holy Family daily ... to protect our families ...

and to preserve all families as strong communities ... of life and love.