It is instructive to note a series of passages in the Gospels that bear on this question, as Jesus Himself anticipated it: - Mt 10:37 Jesus notes that should there be a choice one day between Him or our parents, He demands and expects priority: "Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me." - Mt 15:4 At the same time, He reiterates His knowledge of the Old Testament commandment to honor our parents. For the Jews, this sense of family loyalty was much higher than our own. No old folks' homes in Jesus' day! Yet in this context, He give the above command. - Mt 19:27-29 Peter reminds Jesus that "We have left everything to follow you!" To which Jesus replies, "Everyone who has left...father or mother...for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. - Luke 9:61-62 Finally, Jesus' word to the man who said he would follow Him wherever He went. But he added, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father" (implying waiting around until the father died and he could thus fulfill his parental duty). Jesus' words were very direct: "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God...No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God."

May the Lord guide you, as you meditate on these passages.