Teams of Our Lady: Hope is the families' anchor in a perturbed world

With the onset of 2026, following the conclusion of the Jubilee Year of 2025, during which we were called upon to reflect on the virtue of hope that does not disappoint anybody, the extended Christian families emerge once again as a basis for experiencing and embodying this hope amidst an increasingly turbulent and complex reality.

At a time when political and economic crises escalate, while psychological and social pressures exacerbate, families seem like a small ship on a raging sea. However, the Christian faith does not leave families alone, but rather places them in a heart that accommodates all of them, namely the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the loving heart that neither excludes anybody nor constricts in the presence of sinners, but rather remains open to receive all  those who seek mercy and healing.

The name “Teams of Our Lady” is not merely symbolic, but rather theological and existential. Mary, whom we mark at the beginning of the year as the Mother of God, leads us to the very heart of the Holy Family, namely Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, who are always together. This shared presence is not transient in the Nativity narrative, but rather a profound message implying that no matter how storms intensify, the families are called upon to remain united and enrooted in love.

The Holy Family faced harsh storms, namely threats, displacement, fear, and flight. On its way to Egypt, the family crossed Gaza, where the church there still bears the name of the Holy Family as a sign of solidarity with every displaced or suffering family in our world. It is a miniature image of the reality of millions of families that engage against the waves of daily life, in search for someone to calm the storm.

In this context, the image of Mary, Our Lady of Hope, takes on a special impression. A statue of Virgin Mary, holding the infant Jesus in one hand and an anchor planted in the earth in the other, has been displayed in the Vatican, as a symbol of unwavering hope. The anchor in this regard is not simply an artistic symbol, but rather a clear call indicating that without hope, families are swept away; while with hope, no matter how strong the winds are, steadfastness remains possible.

It is impossible to address hope without referring to peace, namely the profound thirst that plagues our world nowadays, starting from small families to the international community. On the first day of the year, Pope Leo reminded us that true peace starts from within, in hearts and homes, before being reflected in policies and major decisions.

 So many families have been torn apart which is neither attributed to poverty nor to illness, but rather to the absence of peace, the rise of violence and hatred, and the prevalent silence. How painful it is that some of the harshest documents in pastoral life is the annulment of marriage, which reveals the family's "failure" to protect its internal unity.

From this premise, the message of the Teams of Our Lady  becomes a positive one that is not confined to innate joy and private gatherings, but rather to conveying the experience of encountering God to the  distant suffering an divided families. If hope is not shared, then it fades. St. Augustine, whom the Pope often quotes, reminds us that "If you wish to attract others to peace, first have it yourselves; be firm in it, to kindle the inner flame in yourselves”. No family can spread peace while living in constant conflict. Peace is not exported, but it is born first in the heart, then at home, and then radiates into the neighborhood and the community.

Apart from the traditional storms, families nowadays face new challenges, most notably those related to the era of artificial intelligence and its misuse, especially by children. There are ethical and educational challenges that prompt patience, wisdom, and discernment, rather than hasty decisions or blind fear. In this regard, families are called upon to place "their knots" in the heart of Jesus and to resort to Mary, the Undoer of Knots, seeking inner peace in the first place.

In a world prone to disintegration, the committed families remain a sign of hope. In this regard, the " Teams of Our Lady"  are called upon to continue their procession through the sea of ​​this world, by abstaining from false confidence, and resorting to a profound faith in the One who calms the storm with a word, and in a mother who holds Her child in one hand and the anchor of hope in the other.

O Mary, Lady of Hope, pray for our families.

May this year mark an enrooted peace rather than a transient one.