● March 20, 2023 ● St. Joseph ● ● 2 Samuel 7:4-5a, 12-14a, 16 ● Psalm 89 ● Romans 4:13, 16-18 ● Matthew 1:16, 18-21, 24a ●
[__00-a__] With the coming of Jesus as servant who is willing to give up his life for sinners, we see a new standard --- for what it means for “father” and “son” to cooperate with each other.
Being a son, I have a father. I have
not always cooperated with him. There were times I “failed to cooperate” with
him.
Did you ever “fail to cooperate” with
your mother or fail to cooperate with your father?
[__00-b__] One of the ways in which we seek to imitate Joseph and reason we pray for his intercession is because he cooperated with God in a profound way, becoming the foster father of the 2nd person of the trinity, Jesus, the incarnate son of God.
We pray and praise “Joseph most
obedient…”
Joseph was obedient also as a
“mediator” and “model” for Jesus.
We read in the Gospel of John: “For
God so loved the world that he gave his only Son so that all who believe in him
might not perish but might have eternal life” (John 3:16).
God the Father gave his only Son.
Joseph – in a parallel – also gave his only Son to the world.
Father Ronald Knox, a British priest
and writer, observed that Joseph and Mary raised their son not only as their
own , but also to give him away to the whole world.
[__00-c__] Have you ever given your son or your daughter away? To enable your child to grow up, to be educated, to get married, to choose his or own way, this involves “giving the child away.”
We also use the term especially in marriage “to give one’s daughter away.”
But, I suggest the same applies to
parents more generally.
To anyone in charge of raising a young
person.
You are preparing to give the child
away.
But, the mystery here is that you and
the child do not lose connection with each other, but actually can grow
stronger.
[__00-d__] God the Father gave away his Son to die for sinners. But everything Jesus did was to honor his Father in Heaven.
And, the 4th commandment
teaches all of us to honor your father and mother. This honoring does not simply
mean going to bed at a particular hour or doing your homework.
Honoring and obeying and cooperating
with one’s parents is something we are called to do in our pursuit of virtue,
whether our parents are near or far, living or deceased.
To honor and to obey.
[__04.01__] These
days, we strive to raise children – and cultive in ourselves being INTELLIGENT,
PHYSICALLY STRONG, and having CHARACTER.
It goes without saying that we would
want all of these things in a child – INTELLIGENCE, STRENGTH and CHARACTER.
But, do we think in terms of raising
children – or being ourselves “obedient”?
Is being “obedient“ a virtue to you?
to me?
It sounds antiquated and old fashioned
to say that “obedience” is a virtue. In other words, it sounds as though the
obedient person is just a programmable robot or a drone. And, as we know, robots can break down and
drones can be shot down.
However, in a biblical Gospel sense,
being obedient to God’s word is what will help you and to have INTELLIGENCE,
STRENGTH, CHARACTER.
I’d like to touch on these 3 virtues of INTELLIGENCE, STRENGTH, CHARACTER as they relate to Joseph’s 4 dreams and Joseph’s obedience.
1st. “Do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.” (INTELLIGENCE)
Right there, in the beginning, we see the
possibility that Joseph might be getting “cold feet”, getting scared and may
want to excuse himself from the vow to take Mary as his wife.
Now, there are interpretations of this
dream that suggest Joseph was actually afraid because he thought of Mary as too
virtuous – too good for him…and that is why he wanted to divorce her quietly.
That is not a bad theory, but I
suggest it does not leave space to consider that Joseph was still possibly –
AFRAID.
Just a bit.
When I am afraid, I want an excuse not
to do something.
Do you ever – out of fear – try to
excuse yourself or get away?
The message here is that “fear” and
other emotions can coexist. Fear does not have to be winner or the victor.
It is possible for “love” to be
underdog winner here. And, I suggest we are called to use our INTELLIGENCE here.
I am often tempted to use my
INTELLIGENCE to find ways not to obey God or to get around the commandments.
It is also possible to apply oneself
and use intelligence to work through our fears, to consider alternate
possibilities and to listen to God.
Intelligence helps us to cooperate, to
obey God.
2nd dream: “Rise, take the child and go to Egypt.” (CHARACTER)
Why Egypt? This was a good place to
escape the evil King Herod. But Egypt – in biblical history – was a place of
“rescue” …
It was a place of rescue because the
book-of-Genesis “Joseph” lived there and became the rescuer of his father and
family during a time of hunger/famine. The rescue was also part of a great
reconciliation in which the book-of-Genesis Joseph forgave his brothers for
having sold him into slavery.
Joseph in the book of Genesis
demonstrates a great character and mercy towards his brothers to whom he very
easily could have despised and hated.
The rescue in Egypt – in Genesis / Exodus –
shows God’s character.
It also forms the Gospel Joseph’s character
and part of Jesus’ character to forgive those who abandoned him.
This forgiveness was not just Jesus’
“generous” choice. It was also an act of obedient service.
Have you ever considered that God wants you
to forgive others not to show how great you are, but how great He is?
That’s character. Obedience.
[__05__] 3rd and 4th dreams. Take the child and go back to Nazareth. Go back by another route. (STRENGTH)
Joseph is now called home, told to
return home and then told again to go back by a different route.
In his own deathbed speech in
Deuteronomy, Moses said this to the people who were going into the Promised
land, the same destination as JMJ: “So keep all
the commandments I give you today, that you may be strong enough to
enter in and take possession of the land that you are crossing over to possess” (Deuteronomy 11:8)
It takes strength to love God, love
your neighbor as you yourself.
Sometimes, it is easy to forget or
omit or figure that “loving God” is going to be the corollary or device output as
long as I check all the boxes of loving my neighbor, spouse, children and – not
to mention – my enemies.
Yes, it’s possible that loving God
will be the logical outcome
But, we also are called to recognize that
God is our strength.
God is leading us. To love God first
of all.
And, this is particularly important in
Christian marriage and the sacrament of matrimony for a wife and husband.
For the wife and husband are joined
not only to be strong and have strength for each other to love and honor each
other.
Yes, that is true.
In a similar way, a priest “called
Father” is called to love and honor the people he serves.
I am called to this, but my role in
doing so is not just to judge whether or not you like what I am doing. There is
a higher standard. To love God first of all.
Parallel – we love our parents not
just because they are nice to us today – but because they gave us life. We want
to love them be blessed by them. Anything else is a curse!
It is a blessing to love God as Father
and to do so first of all.
It also helps avoid being caught up in
seeking love in the all the wrong places.
Have you ever been tempted to do what is right just to get more “likes”?
A husband or wife might be tempted to
do the same.
But, marriage and the Christian call
us to love God …also to follow the interior voice of God which for Jesus came
in his 4 dreams.
These 4 dreams led him to back by a
different route.
Listening to the Holy Spirit, we are also tapping into the virtues intelligence, of character and of strength so as to cooperate with God and to follow the example of Joseph, most obedient. St. Joseph, pray for us. [__end__]
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