The Silent Testimony of Saint Joseph
This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph; before their marriage she found she was going to have a child through the Holy Spirit. Being a man of principle, and at the same time wanting to save her from exposure, Joseph made up his mind to have the marriage contract quietly set aside. He had resolved on this, when an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home with you to be your wife. It is through the Holy Spirit that she has conceived. She will bear a son; and you shall give him the name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’ All this happened in order to fulfil what the Lord declared through the prophet: ‘A virgin will conceive and bear a son, and he shall be called Emmanuel,’ a name which means ‘God is with us’. When he woke Joseph did as the angel of the Lord had directed him; he took Mary home to be his wife, but had no intercourse with her until her son was born. And he named the child Jesus.
In his telling of the Gospel, Matthew is not much for explaining God's operation. We are given the details of events, but there is little speculation about how God has made these things come to pass. Matthew believes wholeheartedly what he tells us, but rather than an explanation of how it happens, Matthew is much more interested in how we respond. Matthew wants us to understand the urgency with which we ought to change our lives in response to what God has done in our world.
With this in mind, Joseph makes sense as a focus for Matthew's perspective on the birth of Jesus. The story of Joseph is a powerful testimony to what it means to be good and holy in the world. It is a challenging call to holiness for us today. It is a story about defying expectations and choosing what is right in the kingdom of Heaven, rather than the kingdoms of this world. Exemplifying the inverted values of the kingdom of Heaven, Joseph's testimony is a silent one. Rather than sharing sermons or long speeches about what he thinks and understands, Joseph realizes that the world has changed and he changes his life in response.
Before their wedding, Joseph learns Mary is pregnant. She explains that her condition is the work of the Holy Spirit, but Joseph is understandably suspicious. He makes plans to divorce her, but he is a kind man. Legally, he must provide her with a certificate of divorce, but he does not have to make the act a shameful, public spectacle. Even though he would be within his rights to do so. Especially when he suspects Mary of adultery. Public shaming with the possibility of violence was a common treatment for women caught in adultery in Joseph's society.
As Joseph is contemplating these actions, he receives an annunciation from an angel in a dream. The angel makes clear to him that his suspicions are unfounded. Mary is telling the truth about her baby's origin. This child will be the Son of God and he is to be named Jesus. Joseph realizes what God has done and immediately changes course. He takes Mary and the new baby home and they are wed as planned. When the baby is born, it is Joseph who names him. This is a powerful sign of adoption, making Jesus a part of Joseph's family line.
Joseph lives his life as one who has been changed by knowing God intimately. He is the guardian of Mary and Jesus when others would harm them. The provider for the Holy Family. It is Joseph who will teach Jesus a trade. It is Joseph who will be the example of a good man for his adopted son. Today, Joseph is honored throughout the world as the adoptive father of Jesus, the patron of families, carpenters, and the universal Church. Joseph's fame as an example of holiness was earned at a cost.
In the society of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, men are expected to occupy certainly roles and behave in certain ways. Joseph, after realizing what God is doing through his family is few of these things. He is silent while his wife and child have much to say. Joseph must be patient and humble, not defensive or angry, while his neighbours whisper about his appearance as a cuckold. Joseph adopts a son he did not father and immediately steps into the background, silent and strong, while his wife and child take centre stage. He leaves his relations and livelihood in Nazareth for a life in Egypt for the sake of his adopted son. He remains chaste and faithful his whole life. By nearly every metric of his society, Joseph is not a successful or strong man.
But Joseph knows that his society's expectations are not the most important. He sees what God has done in the world. He knows in his heart what we hear in Mary's song on her visit to Elizabeth: God has overturned the human order and the kingdom of Heaven is now at hand. Old expectations and patterns no longer apply. Joseph is living as one who has been changed by what God has done.
Living according to the values of God's kingdom was not easy for Joseph. It proved to be a costly choice. He appeared weak and foolish to many of his neighbours. Joseph gave up plans, dreams, and ambitions that he might have held for the sake of the family he loved. Joseph was not the main character in his own life.
It is no easier for us to live as people who have seen and know the nearness of the kingdom of Heaven. But we have seen and we do know and we are so called. We are challenged every single day to consider the values of our society and compare them to the values of our faith. We must make decisions about what cost we can endure for the sake of our values. In a society that values the isolated individual above all else, we must recognize when it is our calling to be holy, not by taking the spotlight, but by stepping into the background. That we must work for the good of the whole, even when it costs us. Even when all of the voices around us tell us to follow a different way.
When the Word became flesh, the world was changed. In just a few days we will celebrate this truth in one of our greatest festivals. Like Joseph, we are called to be witnesses to the world of what it means to know this truth and to be changed by it. We are called to be testimonies of the kingdom of Heaven for those who still search for its light and to help them on their way.
Thanks be to God for all of those holy ones who, like St Joseph in his humility, have helped us on our way into the kingdom.
