With the story of Jesus’ birth still fresh in our minds on this first Sunday after Christmas, the church uses the opportunity to celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family with all of the readings focused on families. The Gospel readings are from Matthew this year, so the focus this week is on Jesus’ earthly father, Joseph. (When we read from the Gospel of Luke, the focus is on his mother, Mary.) If the story of Jesus’ birth warmed our hearts with its tale of the star over Bethlehem and the magi who travelled long distances to worship and bring him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, the story today takes a terrible turn. Mary and Joseph have no time to savour his birth or let the wonder of the magi’s visit sink in because suddenly their baby’s life is in danger. Like millions of refugees throughout history, they must flee their home country on short notice with just a vague sense of a distant destination. Because they trust the guidance the angel gave Joseph in a dream, they save their son’s life.  Tragically, however, many families lost sons to Herod’s cruelty when he ordered all baby boys killed in his efforts to kill Jesus. (These verses are omitted from the Gospel passage today.) So the Feast of the Holy Family is not “The Feast of the Perfect Family in a Perfect World.” The Church celebrates this family today because of Mary and Joseph’s willingness to say “yes” to raising God’s son, even though it brought them great fear, anxiety, uncertainty, and even anguish because of the evil one man, Herod, wreaked on so many families. They were a holy family, but they did not escape any challenges of being a human family. Questions of the week  Does it change anything for you to think about Jesus’ family in terms of being a refugee family like so many millions today and throughout history? How so?  Mary and Joseph changed course unexpectedly when they needed to in order to protect Jesus’ life. When have you had to change direction suddenly? Can you see the hand of God at work in that change?

Arundel & Brighton Family Crisis Fund - We operate a Crisis Fund which provides immediate financial support for families facing a crisis in their lives. This support can make a huge difference to families in desperate situations when they have nowhere else to turn. “We’ve had a difficult year and your help, support and kindness means a great deal to us. Just knowing there are people who care gives me strength to carry on.” Widowed mother, with two young children Why this is needed - Many families find themselves in traumatic situations completely outside of their control. One diagnosis/fire/redundancy/death can cause their whole world to unravel. Without appropriate support these families can face serious hardship and find themselves in a downward spiral. “I have spoken to mum who broke down in tears – I think you have restored her faith in humankind… you have really helped to make a difference to one of my families today” Headteacher How we help - Our Crisis Fund provides immediate financial support for families where a relatively small amount of one-off funding can make a lasting difference. Examples of families we have helped include: • A seven year old girl was sleeping huddled in blankets with her younger sister on the floor because the family were destitute. We helped the family buy bunk beds, mattresses and bedding ensuring these two young children now have a comfortable and warm place to sleep. • Two teenage girls lost their mother in a traffic accident. The school reported that the siblings were “finding coping with both grief and organising their mother’s funeral with no money unbearable.” As they were both in full time education they didn’t qualify for any statutory assistance. The Crisis Fund enabled these siblings to hold a basic funeral and bury their mother with dignity. • A mother and her three young children fled domestic violence and needed help getting a deposit to rent a new flat. Our Crisis Fund provided the family with the immediate one-off support they needed to have a safe place to call home. “The family have been through such a difficult time and I know that your donation will go a long way to helping them get back on their feet. Thank you.” Head of School