Family Matters

By Nicholas Kovacs

When we think of the term family, we usually think of our parents, siblings and grandparents. The richness of relationships with our relatives is truly a blessing. Our Church teaches us that through Jesus, every baptized Christian becomes a sibling to each other, creating an incredible family bond. Through the grace of Christ, we become a member of the largest Christian family, the Catholic Church, which is present throughout the entire world.

In 1999, my father accepted a job transfer from the Canadian Rocky Mountains to the Panhandle of Florida. As you can well imagine, this move was an exciting adventure, but at the same time unsettling for my family and I, because we were moving to a strange land far from our loving relatives.  We were basically the pilgrims of old, surviving alone in a new world thousands of miles from home. Thankfully, our loneliness quickly subsided when we turned on the television and discovered Mother Angelica and the greatness of her EWTN network. 

So how was Mother able to remove our loneliness? She brought us into the universality of our blessed Catholic Church by calling her viewers family. This simple word became more than a friendly expression to my family and I. It became an amazing reality. Within months we made our first pilgrimage to EWTN, and experienced the great privilege of meeting Mother. 

When Mother came to shake my hand, I was deeply moved. She gave me that personal gift of family which I was missing because of my move. Now when I go to EWTN for my yearly pilgrimage, I go not only for my spiritual renewal, but also to be with my Catholic family.  Mother Angelica's vision of family even inspired me to join the world wide Franciscan Third Order family. I am proud to be a member of the biggest family in the world; the Catholic Church!