Not needing to understand

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary on the Solemnity of Saint Joseph connect us to the deep faith, love and loyalty of the man who accepted the role of spouse and father in the Holy Family.

Joseph and child in stained glass

The Second Book of Samuel establishes the promise of a line of descendants of David who would always be the connection between God and His People.

* [7:16] The unconditional promise made here, and reflected in Ps 89:34–35, stands in contrast to the tradition in Ps 132:12, where the continuation of the line of David depends on their fidelity to the Lord; cf. also 1 Kgs 2:4; 6:12; 8:25.

In the Letter to the Romans, Paul establishes that our peace with God is based in our trust in God.

* [4:1–25] This is an expanded treatment of the significance of Abraham’s faith, which Paul discusses in Gal 3:6–18; see notes there.

The Gospel from Matthew describes the love, righteousness, mysticism and trust of Joseph in his relationship with God.

* [1:18–25] This first story of the infancy narrative spells out what is summarily indicated in Mt 1:16. The virginal conception of Jesus is the work of the Spirit of God. Joseph’s decision to divorce Mary is overcome by the heavenly command that he take her into his home and accept the child as his own. The natural genealogical line is broken but the promises to David are fulfilled; through Joseph’s adoption the child belongs to the family of David. Matthew sees the virginal conception as the fulfillment of Is 7:14.

Luis Rodriguez, S.J. comments that there is nothing bland in the Joseph portrayed in today’s Gospel reading.

We find it disconcerting that all this is the result of God’s having entered their lives. We expect closeness to God to be a “rosy” experience. We need to check our expectations and trust God’s presence in our lives, even when it causes some human discomfort. It is this kind of trust that helped Joseph and Mary to move from not understanding to not needing to understand.

Don Schwager reflects on the character of Joseph, quoting a homily by Bernard of Clairvaux, 1090-1153.

"Joseph's character and qualities can be deduced from the fact that God honored him with the title of father, and, although his doing so was a mere matter of convenience, this was what he was known as and believed to be. Joseph's own name, which as you know means "increase", supplies further indications. Call to mind the great patriarch of old who was sold into Egypt, and you will realize that it was not only his name that our saint received but also his chastity, innocence, and grace. His brothers' envy had caused the earlier Joseph to be sold and taken to Egypt, thus symbolizing the selling of Christ: the later Joseph carried Christ into Egypt, fleeing before Herod's envy... The first Joseph had the gift of interpreting dreams: the second was given a revelation of the divine plan and a share in its accomplishment. Joseph the patriarch stored up grain, not for himself but for all the people: our Joseph was given custody of the living bread from heaven to keep safe both for himself and the whole world. There is no doubt that the Joseph to whom the Savior's mother was engaged was a good and faithful man. He was, I say, the wise and faithful steward whom the Lord appointed to support his mother and care for himself in childhood, singling him out for his complete reliability to help him with his momentous plan." (Hom. 2 super Missus est, 11.16: PL 183, 69-70)

Friar Jude Winkler highlights the oracle of Nathan to David establishing a royal dynasty eternal in the kingship of Jesus. A new definition of righteousness, obedient and compassionate, is defined by Joseph response to the call of God. Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, explains why the “thisness” of Duns Scotus is so good and important for our experience of the subtleness of our relationship with the Body of Christ.

Duns Scotus fully and happily live inside the communal Body of Christ, while still preserving and honoring the importance of the individual. He is an amazing example of bridging the gap. I find it most rare in our postmodern society on both the Left and the Right. He held onto the individual end of the continuum so strongly (almost unheard of in the 13th century) that some churchmen have accused him of actually fathering Western individualism! In truth, Duns Scotus held the entire continuum together—both part and whole—with such refined consciousness that he was very early dubbed “The Subtle Doctor” of the Church. We could use such subtlety today.

Joseph was a man who lived holiness in harmony with the Hebrew Testament and launched the gift of a New Testament in his care for Jesus and Mary.
References


(n.d.). 2 Samuel, chapter 7 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved March 19, 2018, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/2samuel/7

(n.d.). Romans, chapter 4 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved March 19, 2018, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/bible/Romans/4:13

(n.d.). Matthew, chapter 1 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved March 19, 2018, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/bible/matthew/1:29

(November 18, 2017) Jesus and child in stained glass retrieved March 19, 2018 from https://www.flickr.com/photos/quinet/

(n.d.). Creighton University's Online Ministries. Retrieved March 19, 2018, from http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/online.html

(2017, December 30). 2018 Daily Meditations - Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved March 19, 2018, from https://cac.org/2018-daily-meditations/