The Holy Family refers to Jesus, the Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph. It represents the ideal model of the Christian family, based on love, faith and obedience to God. According to the Gospels, Mary conceived Jesus by the Holy Spirit, and Joseph, her husband, raised him as his own son. After the birth in Bethlehem, the family fled to Egypt to escape the massacre of the Innocents ordered by Herod, then settled in Nazareth. Jesus grew up under their protection before beginning his ministry. The feast of the Holy Family is celebrated on the Sunday after Christmas in the Catholic Church.
