Gospel: Mathew 1, 18 – 24
This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with child through the Holy Spirit.
Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means “God is with us.”When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home.
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Some years ago I remember speaking to a young couple about the way one goes about planning the family; the number of children that one intends to have; the manner of educating them etc. I remember saying to them that decisions such as these must be made in a spirit of prayer so that God’s will be reflected in their decision. I remember the look of surprise on their faces because evidently they had not taken what God would want of them into account. That unfortunately is the case with many of us. When important decisions have to be made we often forget that our decisions must be in alignment with God’s will.
In the Gospel reading for this 4th Sunday of Advent this scenario is being played out. Joseph has an important decision to make. Mary the woman to whom he is betrothed is discovered to be pregnant and he is not the man responsible for this pregnancy. Joseph we are told is “a righteous man.” We remember the scripture passage in which we are told that the righteous person lives by faith. Because Joseph is righteous he seeks to do what people of faith do. They trust in God and seek God’s guidance. In this Gospel passage Joseph initially thinks that he should put Mary away privately. In so doing he would allow the true father of the child to claim his child and marry Mary. As a man of faith Joseph would have asked God if that was the correct course of action. As a man of faith, Joseph would be attuned to the voice of God acting within him and would respond with total trust. In the Gospel passage the imagery used is that of an angel appearing in a dream; “the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” What happens in fact is that Joseph uses what we would call today a process of discernment and responds in total trust to what he perceives as God’s will for him. “When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home.”
This gospel passage is the annunciation according to St. Matthew. We are accustomed to the Annunciation according to St. Luke and we call Mary, because of this the woman of faith. This passage according to Matthew presents Joseph as a man of faith, attuned to God’s voice and responding to it with total trust. Joseph as a model is important for all of us for while we can say that Mary was sinless and therefore above us, Joseph was not conceived without sin. He is truly one of us. Because of this his example is extremely important as we go about the task of making those often life changing decisions during the course of our lives; whether we will marry or not; the profession we will pursue in life; decisions about the size of our families, second careers etc.
We will only make decisions which are attuned to God’s will however if we are righteous, persons of faith, accustomed to listening very closely to God’s word. Because all human beings are creatures of habit, we must therefore begin (it is never too late) to build the habit of listening to God’s word and responding positively to it. This is what all the saints did, so that they often embarked on courses of action which many felt were foolhardy but which history has shown were correct. May all of us become therefore righteous, persons of faith so that like St. Joseph we may be attuned to God’s voice.
Prayer
All powerful and ever-loving God, you give us St. Joseph as a righteous man, am man of faith, attuned to your voice. Grant to us the gift of listening to your voice always and of responding to it positively so that your will be accomplished in all that we do. We ask this through the intercession of Mary our Mother and Jesus your Son. Amen
