Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.

 

Scripture readings for this reflection can be found at Thursday of the Third Week of Advent | USCCB

In our gospel for today we hear about Joseph and how he found out that Mary was pregnant with the Lord. Before finding out that Mary became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit, and the child in her womb was the Messiah, I could only imagine what Joseph was feeling! How could the woman that he loved be pregnant. He knew that he wasn’t responsible for the pregnancy. So, he assumed that Mary was unfaithful to him.

Being a righteous man, he didn’t want Mary’s reputation to be hurt, so he decided to divorce her quietly. But being a righteous man and open to God’s Will, he was able to hear what the Lord expected of him. It was through a dream that Joseph found out the truth about Mary and the child she was carrying. Being a God-fearing Man, Joseph took Mary into his home and was ready to protect her and the baby within her from all harm. It is through his silent strength that he was able to do the job God was asking him to do. Thus, the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph came into being.

Joseph’s quiet acceptance of God’s Will for his life is an example of how we are to live out our lives in attempting to do what God expects of us. You will notice that no words are attributed to Joseph in scripture. Scripture tells us of his concern over Mary being pregnant, then the angel appears to him in a dream clarifying what was happening and what was expected of Joseph. Joseph, upon getting out of bed, doesn’t say anything. He just goes and does what God is asking him to do to bring salvation through Jesus Christ coming into the world.

We are all called to different ways of bringing Jesus into the world. Joseph was to be the foster father of the Lord and to protect Jesus from all harm. That was his call. Our call is to bring Jesus into the world by sharing good news of Jesus with others, maybe not with words, but with how we live out our lives. People will see how we live out our lives as followers of Jesus Christ and may also be attracted to be followers of the Lord Christ. By our regular attendance at Mass, by our frequent prayers outside of Mass and by how we treat others with love and respect, we are bringing Jesus into the world. By living this way, we can hope people will know that “God is with us” and will consider living a life in relationship with God through Jesus Christ

As we approach Christmas Day, let us pray for all those we hold dear in our lives that may be away from the Church that they may turn to Jesus and embrace him as their savior.

Praise be Jesus Christ, now and forever.