“The angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.’ When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home.” Matthew 1:20-21,24
Today we celebrate the feast of St. Joseph, the spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary and foster father of Jesus. We don’t know much about him. He is only mentioned three times in the Scriptures and he doesn’t say a single word. And yet, from the little that is said, we know that he was full of hope, trust and courage.
Joseph had hopes and dreams before his life came crashing down. Imagine being engaged to be married, your fiancée tells you that she’s pregnant, and you know that the baby is not yours. If I had said that to Rafael before we got married, he would have walked away. No way he would have taken on someone else’s responsibility. And his hopes and dreams for our future together would have come crashing down. That is exactly what happened to Joseph. He had all these plans for a happy life with Mary, dreams of the children they would have together, and hopes for a future filled with love, when Mary drops the bomb: “Joseph, I’m pregnant.” In three words, his dreams were shattered and his hopes destroyed. And yet, in spite of his huge disappointment, he was a noble man. He loved Mary so much that he decided to walk away quietly. He could have chosen to publicly dishonor her, which would have resulted in her being stoned to death. But he didn’t want that for her, even if he thought at the time that she had broken her promise to him.
After he decides to break the engagement, the story gets better. He goes to sleep and an angel appears to him. However, as opposed to Mary who had an angel visit her while she was fully awake, this angel appears to Joseph in a dream. I’m pretty sure that if this had happened to Rafael, he still would not have married me. But Joseph trusted God so much that he believed that the dream was real. And he took Mary as his wife, pregnant with a child that was not his own. What a lesson in trust and humility we can all learn from Joseph.
The second time that Joseph is mentioned in the scriptures is when he had to go to Bethlehem for the census. Most likely, he could have gone by himself and leave Mary with friends and family in Nazareth. But he was a responsible man, and he knew that this child that Mary was carrying was no ordinary child. Thus, he takes Mary with him on a long journey, through the desert, just so that he could take care of her and the baby. Little did he know that they would not return to Nazareth anytime soon. After the baby is born, once again an angel appears to him in a dream and tells him to take Mary and the child and go to Egypt. Not only did he have to trust God, but it shows his courage. He didn’t know what they would find in Egypt. Certainly no home or family to welcome them. In Egypt, they were refugees. I can’t help but remember when I arrived in Spain with my parents and we had to go to “una pension.” It was a cheap hostel where all we had was a room with two beds, and we had to share a kitchen and bathroom with a lot of strangers.
Even though Joseph lived a life of adversity with unexpected twists and turns, he always trusted God. He never failed God in all the responsibilities that God entrusted him. He always stepped up to the plate. He had confidence that God was with him every step of the way, and because he trusted and was courageous, his hopes and dreams for his future turned out to be even better than he could have possibly imagined. He had the privilege of holding in his arms the salvation of the world. And when his mission here on earth was finished, he died in the arms of Jesus and Mary. And all because he trusted and said YES to God.
St. Joseph, pray for us.
Copyright © 2022 Christy Romero. All rights reserved.
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