“And Joseph rising up from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him, and took unto him his wife. And he knew her not until she brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name Jesus.” — Mt 1:24-25
Good morning Lord.
After my dream and my reconciliation with Mary, time has passed rapidly. Tomorrow is our wedding day. The whole town is excited because it has been a while since a wedding has taken place in Nazareth.
This has been a very hot summer, and it seems like today and tomorrow will be just as hot, but thankfully, it will not rain. Today, even though I have not yet left the house, I can see through the window that there is not even a breeze. Not a single leave is moving in the trees. Even though it’s early, I can already feel the sweat running down my back.
I have been very busy working with Mary’s uncle repairing various parts of Mary’s house that just needed a little makeover. We have decided to live in her house. Her aunt and uncle have a home of their own, they just sort of moved in with Mary when her mother passed away so she would not be all alone. But now that I am moving into her home, they will return to their own house. If we had gone to live at my house, we would have had to share it with my parents and siblings. This way, we will have a place to call our own, a luxury that most newlyweds don’t have. Even my brother Clopas, who is older than me, and has already been married for a few years, still lives in my parents’ house.
In spite of how busy I have been between keeping up with my carpentry shop and working on the house, I have made time to spend at least one hour with Mary each night. As our wedding day drew closer, she has been thinking a lot about her parents, and missing them tremendously. Not having them with her on such a special day has brought a speck of sadness on an otherwise perfect day.
Thankfully, she has her aunt and uncle who have done such a wonderful job to prepare her for the big day. Her aunt has been working around the clock on her wedding vestments. When her aunt found out that Mary was with child, she just hugged her and said: “Your mom would have been so happy to become a grandmother.”
My sister Salome and my sister-in-law Mary (Clopas’ wife) are getting ready to go to Mary’s house to help her prepare for the wedding day tomorrow. I am not sure what all the fuss is about, but I overheard them talking about perfumed oils to lather her skin and my sister-in-law prepared an alabaster box which contains an ointment which she claims would be good for the bride’s face. I am so happy to be a man. All I have to do is get dressed and show up.
Before I head out to the shop, I grabbed the Sacred Scriptures, and I read: “Isaac went out to meditate in the field toward evening; and he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, camels were coming. Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac she dismounted from the camel. She said to the servant, ‘Who is that man walking in the field to meet us?’ And the servant said, ‘He is my master.’ Then she took her veil and covered herself. The servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. Then Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent, and he took Rebekah, and she became his wife, and he loved her” (1).
Just like Isaac made Rebekah his wife, tomorrow I will make Mary my wife. It will be different, though. We have both made a vow of chastity. But “by divine operation, (I) feel an incomparable joy and consolation… (You, Lord, have given me) new purity and complete command over (my) natural inclinations, so that without hindrance or any trace of sensual desires, but with admirable and new grace, (I) might serve (my) Spouse Mary, and in her, execute (Your) Will and pleasure.” (2)
I pray to you, Lord, to grant Mary and I, a love story similar to Isaac and Rebekah’s. I pray that you give us a beautiful day for our wedding tomorrow. And now, I must go to work.
Reflection:
As their wedding day approaches, Mary is thinking of her parents. Today, as Christmas approaches, we may also be missing those persons that we love that are no longer with us. Do we pray to them? Is our faith strong enough to know that even though they are no longer physically present, they are with us always in spirit? One day, we will reunite with those that have left before us because death is not the end.
Copyright © 2024. Christy Romero. All rights reserved.
References:
- Genesis 24:63-67
- The Mystical City of God: A Popular Abridgement of the Divine History and Live of the Virgin Mother of God by Venerable Mary of Agreda (Book 2, Chapter VII).
Resources from the following books are being used on this journey:
- The Mystical City of God: A Popular Abridgement of the Divine History and Live of the Virgin Mother of God by Venerable Mary of Agreda
- Consecration to St. Joseph by Fr. Donald H. Calloway
- Las Palabras Calladas: Diario de Maria de Nazaret by Pedro Miguel Lamet
All Bible references are from the New American Revised Edition Bible (NAREB) unless otherwise specified.
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