“he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him” Matthew 1:24

Brother Michael Moore of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate writes that today, in union with the whole Church, we celebrate the Feast of St. Joseph. While we know that Joseph was Mary’s husband and the earthly father of Jesus, we have very little historical information about him. We know more about Joseph from what he did rather than what he said. In the gospels he is a man of few, if any, words. Clearly his actions speak louder than his words. Sadly, we tend to gloss over him and even forget about him until we see him on traditional Christmas cards. Joseph is a man of courage, conviction, and commitment. He is a man of hope and faith who trusted in God who called him personally by his name. He didn’t simply react; he responded faithfully to situations as they arose and faced them courageously out of concern for Mary and Jesus. While the call of Mary in Luke’s gospel is known as The Annunciation, Joseph too had own personal call and annunciation. In Matthew’s gospel Joseph is depicted as a good and decent man who always did the right thing. He is a righteous man. He is concerned about Mary according to the Jewish Law. On discovering that Mary was pregnant before they were publicly married, Joseph decides to divorce her privately to save her embarrassment and shame. Faced with what seemed like the impossible, Joseph didn’t walkway or give in. He trusted God and said yes. Given what we are all still living with, can we in any way look to Joseph and follow his example of trusting that God is truly with us today and every day?

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