DEC 29, 2024
DEC 29, 2024
Connections—The Chosen: Scene of Jesus in the Temple as a 12 year old
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TELEVISION
Holy Family - YEAR C
JOHN HILTON III (2:31) – This video excerpt from The Chosen was created for the educational purpose of enhancing your study of Jesus in the temple as a 12-year-old, as described in Luke 2:42-50.
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MOVIES
Holy Family - YEAR C
HOME ALONE (3:06) – Scenes from the 1990 movie “Home Alone” showing how Kevin got left behind.
How could Mary and Joseph lose track of Jesus?
Deacon McCulloch begins his homily this way:
After visiting the Temple in Jerusalem for the Passover festival, Mary and Joseph join a caravan and start heading home to Nazareth. But like in a scene from the movie ‘Home Alone’, they discover that they’ve left 12-year-old Jesus behind. They rush back and find him in the Temple.
However, unlike the movie’s Kevin McAllister, Jesus wasn’t running amok and eating junk food. Rather, he was amazing everyone with his intelligence and his understanding of God and Scripture.
This story of The Finding in the Temple has something to teach us about family life…
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MUSIC
Holy Family - YEAR C
LUCY MALCOLM (3:53) – “Cats in the cradle” by Harry Chapin music video filmed by Lucille Malcolm
Fr. Bob Warren, SA mentions this song in his homily:
Some of us can remember a song by Harry Chapin recorded many years ago. It was called The Cat’s in the Cradle. It was a ballad about the relationship between a father and son. The father spent his time and energies making a successful living. The son kept asking for his attention, to be able to share his father’s life: “When you comin’ home, Dad?” The son would repeatedly ask, only to receive the reply, “I don’t know when, but we will get together then.” …Make that phone call, take that visit now. Remember the song, The Cat’s in the Cradle: we will get together then. “Then” may never come. Do it now!
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ART
William Holman
Hunt
(1827 – 1910)
An English painter and one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. His paintings were notable for their great attention to detail, vivid colour, and elaborate symbolism.
Holy Family - YEAR C
MONA LISA’S VEIL (3:09) – This video analyzes “The Finding of the Savior in the Temple” by William Holman Hunt – a Victorian Pre-Raphaelite painter. The painting is rich in religious symbolism and reflects Hunt’s personal racial and religious prejudices that prevailed in Britain at the time.
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RELIGION
Judaism
Christianity
Taoism
Hinduism
Buddhism
Islam
Holy Family - YEAR C
MANA PRODUCTIONS (9:39) – If you never been to a Bar Mitzvah, watch this video. You will feel like you are right there with Roni during this very important milestone in his life.
Fr. Kevin Rettig
In “Why Were You Looking for Me?”, the story of Jack Benny and a mother searching for her daughter are shared to explore the universal experience of seeking something lost. Reflecting on the questions posed by a twelve-year-old Jesus in the temple, the narrative delves into the deeper meanings of loss and the search for meaning. The Christ’s question, “Why were you looking for me?” prompts introspection on different aspects of life such as lost innocence, beauty, faith, and connections. Ultimately, the message conveyed is that the search for fulfillment and understanding can be found within oneself through love and faith.
Holy Family - YEAR C
FR. KEVIN’S HOMILIES (10:03) – The Child Jesus posed many questions to the elders in the Temple. But the most important one was the question he directed that day to his parents — and to us.
Why Were You Looking for Me?
The search for lost connections, innocence, and meaning in life reflects a universal human experience that drives us to seek understanding, healing, and rediscovery of love and divinity within ourselves.
Discussion Points
1. Personal Memories and the Nature of Inquiry
- Reflect on the story of Jack Benny and his interactions with curious children. How do questions from the young often lead us to deeper self-reflection?
- Consider the parallel between the questions posed by the child Jesus in the temple and the broader questions of life we all face. Discuss the implications of a child questioning the elders.
2. Longing and Loss
- Share any personal experiences of searching for something or someone lost, similar to the story of the elderly woman searching for her daughter. How does this illustrate the persistence of love and the pain of unfulfilled longing?
- Discuss how Mary and Joseph might have felt during their search for Jesus. How do these feelings compare to personal experiences of loss or separation?
3. Reflecting on What We Seek
- The sermon suggests that we are all looking for something we have lost, such as innocence, beauty, or faith. Reflect on what each group member might feel they are seeking in their own lives.
- How does the commercial pursuit of beauty mentioned in the sermon relate to our constant desire to recapture what we perceive as lost?
4. Faith and Searching
- Consider the notion of a "lost faith," as mentioned in the sermon. How do individuals and communities navigate the journey of re-establishing or re-discovering faith?
- Explore how personal losses, whether physical possessions or relationships, impact our spiritual journey.
5. Examining Deeper Questions
- What deeper questions about life and existence are group members seeking answers to? Share thoughts on why these questions might lead someone to seek spiritual insight.
- Discuss the existential and philosophical questions that the sermon raises, such as the purpose of life and why some individuals have vastly different life experiences.
6. Inner Reflection and Discovery
- The sermon concludes with a message about finding Christ and love within ourselves. Reflect on how inner spiritual discovery can address the various searches and longings we experience.
- How do we cultivate an inner space that welcomes love and spirituality, enabling us to find what we seek?
7. Conclusion and Personal Takeaways
- What key insights or ideas from the sermon resonate most with you personally?
- How can the group support each other in their individual searches and spiritual journeys?
INSIGHTFUL | ACTIONABLE | CONTROVERSIAL
Insightful
Spiritual Significance
Q: What deeper meaning does Jesus’ question “Why were you looking for me?” hold?
A: It’s a question directed not only to Mary and Joseph but to each of us, prompting reflection on our own spiritual searches and what we’re truly seeking in life.
Q: How can the search for something lost be understood spiritually?
A: If our hearts form the “abode of love”, we can find God within ourselves, mirroring Mary and Joseph’s discovery of Jesus in the Temple.
Universal Human Experience
Q: What universal human experience does the homily highlight?
A: The search for something lost is a common human experience, whether it’s lost innocence, beauty, or faith, as people seek to recover what they once had.
Q: How long and challenging can the search for something lost be?
A: It can be a long and arduous journey, exemplified by Mary and Joseph’s three-day search for Jesus, filled with fear and worry.
Personal Journeys
Q: What personal example illustrates the persistence in searching for something lost?
A: An elderly lady spent 50 years searching for her missing daughter, asking every person she met, “Have you seen my daughter?”
Q: How does the homily relate the story of Jesus in the Temple to personal spiritual journeys?
A: It suggests that our own searches, like Mary and Joseph’s, can lead us to unexpected spiritual discoveries and deeper understanding of our relationship with God.
INSIGHTFUL | ACTIONABLE | CONTROVERSIAL
Actionable
Finding Meaning and Purpose
Q: How can we find what we’re searching for in life?
A: Look within yourself, in the “abode of love” inside, rather than searching far and wide, as Jesus reminded his parents he was in his Father’s house.
Q: What often motivates our search for something lost?
A: Wounded life experiences, desire to patch up hurt, need for answers to deep existential questions, and fear of abandonment drive our search for lost things.
Reconnecting with Self
Q: How can we reconnect with our inner selves?
A: Seek to reconnect with the child inside or find something higher that was once present, such as faith or a sense of purpose.
Overcoming Challenges
Q: How long can the search for something lost take?
A: It can be a long and arduous process, as exemplified by the elderly lady who spent years looking for her daughter.
Spiritual Guidance
Q: What is the core message of Christ regarding our search?
A: Christ’s message emphasizes presence and availability, reminding us that we can find what we’re looking for right where we are.
Self-Reflection
Q: What profound question did the 12-year-old Jesus ask?
A: “Why were you looking for me?” – a question directed not only to Mary and Joseph but to each of us as we search for lost innocence, beauty, or faith.
INSIGHTFUL | ACTIONABLE | CONTROVERSIAL
Controversial
Challenging Traditional Beliefs
Q: Is Jesus’ question to his parents a rebuke of their parental concern?
A: Jesus’ question “why were you looking for me?” can be seen as a challenge to parental authority and a assertion of his divine mission, rather than a typical child’s response to worried parents.
Q: Does Jesus’ presence in the Temple negate the need for physical searching?
A: Jesus’ statement “do you not know that I am right here in my Father’s house?” suggests that spiritual presence may be more important than physical location, potentially contradicting the natural instinct to search for a missing child.
Personal Faith and Loss
Q: Can the search for something lost become an unhealthy obsession?
A: The story of the elderly lady searching for years for her missing daughter illustrates how the search for something lost can become a consuming purpose of living, potentially overshadowing other aspects of life.
Q: Is lost faith recoverable in the same way as lost possessions?
A: The homily suggests that lost faith is included among things people search for, implying it can be “found” again, which may challenge views that faith, once lost, is irretrievable.
Universal Human Experience
Q: Does equating all types of loss trivialize more serious losses?
A: By comparing the search for lost possessions, friends, and faith to the search for a missing child, the homily may be seen as oversimplifying or diminishing the gravity of certain types of loss.
Q: Is the concept of searching for lost things truly timeless?
A: The homily presents the search for something lost as a universal human experience that transcends age and time, which may overlook cultural or historical differences in how loss is perceived and handled.