St Joseph – Model of fatherhood
SEE INSIDE FOR 25TH ANNIVERSARY FEATURE OF THE DIOCESE OF MANDEVILLE
EVEN THE Son of God needed a father on earth to care for him. So God the Father reasoned when He chose Joseph to raise His Son, to care for Him and to teach Him. The Bible tells us that Joseph was a “just man”, meaning he was a good man, honest, fair, and God-loving. Tradition reminds us that Joseph was a simple carpenter from Nazareth.
Scripture reminds us that Mary was betrothed to Joseph; that is, Mary was formally and legally promised to Joseph. They were not yet living together; that would come after marriage. It is perfectly understandable, then, that Joseph was puzzled when he discovered that Mary was pregnant. An angel appeared to him in a dream and assured him of the divine nature of this child who would become the Messiah. Joseph was to be her husband and protect the child as He grew. Joseph chose to trust the angel and God. He married Mary and took her into his home. By this, he proved his faithfulness, first to Mary and then, more importantly, to God. And then, in one further act of faithfulness and obedience to God, Joseph publicly named the child. Matthew says simply, “he
named him Jesus”. In so doing, he claimed the child as his own and gave him the benefit of a noble ancestry, making him a descendent of the house of David. Because of this faithfulness of Joseph, Jesus would have an earthly father.
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem, the angel appeared to Joseph again, warning him that the child was in danger. Joseph obeyed the angel’s message, and took his family to Egypt to escape from Herod’s soldiers. After many years, the Holy Family finally returned to their home in Nazareth. By his
obedience to God and his docility towards the heavenly messenger, Joseph is a model for us that in fathering a child, a man must obey God and be docile in being guided by divine inspiration.
To the world, faithfulness and the quiet strength of Joseph may seem foolish, but to those who are willing to follow his example and surrender their wills to the will of God, the faithfulness of Joseph is not simply a way of pleasing God; it’s a way of fulfilling one’s own destiny. A faithful person is trustworthy and reliable. Some people make faithfulness a hallmark of their human relationships, but the faithfulness that matters most is the faithfulness we show towards God.
This silent saint, who was given the noble task of caring and watching over the Virgin Mary and Jesus, now surely cares for and watches over the church. BISHOP BURCHELL MCPHERSON JUNE 2017