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 Homily for the Solemnity of St. Joseph, the Husband of Mary

READ: (2 Sam 7:4-5, 12-14, 16; Rom 4:13, 16-18, 22; Matt 1:16, 18-21, 24)

REFLECT:  St. Joseph – the righteous, responsive and responsible steward of God…

Dear friends, today we along with the Holy Mother the Church celebrate the Solemnity of St. Joseph, the husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the foster father of Jesus. St. Joseph is never quoted nor portrayed as the one who speaks in the bible, but responds to God in silence. He is only mentioned by name in the birth narratives of Jesus in Matthew (Matt 1: 1-25) and Luke (Lk 2; 3: 23; 4:22), and only mentioned in passing in John (Jn 1:45; 6:42) where Jesus is called the ‘son of Joseph’.

There have been many papal encyclicals and apostolic letter are written to honor St. Joseph and his role in the Catholic Church. The following are some of them;

The decree of Pope Pius IX that declared St. Joseph Patron of the Universal Church: “Quemadmodum Deus” in Dec 8, 1870; The encyclical letter of Pope Leo XIII on devotion to St. Joseph: “Quamquam Pluries” in Aug 15, 1889; The Apostolic Epistle “Le Voci”by  Pope John XXIII, where Saint Joseph was named Patron of the Second Vatican Council in March 19, 1961; The Apostolic Exhortation of Pope St. John Paul II on the Person and Mission of St. Joseph in the Life of Christ and of the Church: “Redemptoris Custos” in Nov 24 2013; The Decree entitled “Paternas vices” Pope Francis’ first decree on liturgical matters, the name of St. Joseph was asked to be inserted into Eucharistic Prayers II, III, and IV,  in May 1, 2013.

The recent Apostolic Letter by Pope Francis is “Patris Corde” on the 150th anniversary of the Proclamation of St. Joseph as Patron of the Universal Church. Holy Father Pope Francis has declared from 8th  December 2020, to 8th  December 2021as the year of St. Joseph with the Apostolic Letter “Patris corde” (With a Father’s Heart). The reason is to recall the 150th anniversary of the declaration of Saint Joseph as Patron of the Universal Church.  In this apostolic letter “With a Father’s heart,” Pope Francis describes Saint Joseph as a beloved father, a tender and loving father, an obedient father, an accepting father; a father who is creatively courageous, a working father, a father in the shadows.

St. Joseph is entitled as the ‘Patron of the universal Church’ by Pope Pius IX in 1870. St. Joseph’s feast day is celebrated as Father’s day in some catholic countries like Spain, Portugal and Italy. So based on the liturgy of the word and the life of St. Joseph, I would like to share with you three points of reflection;

1.     St. Joseph – the Righteous Person

We all know that righteousness is acting in accord with divine or moral law, free from guilt or sin. Righteousness is one of the important attributes of God in the bible (Lev 19:36, Deut 25:1, Ps 1:6, Prov 8:20). In the Old Testament Noah (Gen 6:6) and Job (Job 1:8) are portrayed as just and righteous men. As justice and righteousness is considered as most important attribute of God, God rewards the just and righteous person.  

We see tn the second reading form St. Paul’s letter to the Romans that presents to us the faith and righteousness of Abraham. St. Paul reminds us that the promise to Abraham and to his offspring did not come about by law but through the righteousness of faith by Abraham. It is the faith of Abraham counted to him as righteousness. The faith that Abraham placed in God made him a righteous person.

Something similar we find in the life of St. Joseph, in the New Testament. St. Joseph is called as a righteous man. He is also called as a man of righteousness, because of his faith, trust and confidence in God. As a just God, God chooses just and righteous man St. Joseph as a foster father to Jesus to partake in the salvation history designed by God for humanity.

In Matt 5:20 we hear from Jesus, “For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.” Yes, righteousness is not merely being or following legalistic or ritualistic practices rather righteousness demands being right and treating others as well fairly and rightly, without hurt or hate. That’s what St. Joseph does, when he comes to know that Mary was with a child before marriage. As a just and righteous man, St. Joseph knew the laws and customs of the jewish society, yet he chooses not put Mary in public shame but to divorce quietly and safe-guard her.

In this regard, Pope Francis would say too that “St. Joseph was “just” precisely because he was subject to the law as any pious Israelite. But within him, his love for Mary and his trust in her suggested a way he could remain in observance of the law and save the honor of his bride. He decided to renounce her in secret, without making noise, without subjecting her to public humiliation. He chose the path of confidentiality, without a trial or retaliation. How holy Joseph was! We, as soon as we have a bit of gossip, something scandalous about someone else, we go around talking about it right away.”

Yes, St. Joseph as a just and righteous man teaches us not to gossip but to respect the other. Today most of us have become self-righteous or overly righteous; we show no compassion and mercy to the other when in hardships and difficulties, when we are right and others are wrong. True righteousness saves persons and does not destroy. So let us pray that through our righteousness, we save the lives of people and respect others dignity.

2.     St. Joseph – the Responsive Person

We know that responsive means being quick to respond, prompt in attention and action. Responsiveness also means timely decisions that lead to timely actions moving towards a particular project, plan or purpose for success. One of the primary skill of responsive persons is Listening, where they use ears and minds to understand what has been told or addressed.

Certainly, St. Joseph was responsive to the words God manifested in his dream and responded instantly to abide in the plan of God. The Gospel reading points out to us how St. Joseph listened to God’s word and responded promptly and lovingly. In Matt 1: 24-25 we see St. Joseph did what the angel of the Lord told him to do and he took Mary his wife to home. As a man engaged to Mary had his own dreams and plans for the future. But he readily foregoes everything for God’s plan and responds promptly without any delay.

That’s what Pope Francis would very beautifully share that “St. Joseph is a “protector” because he is able to hear God’s voice and be guided by his will; and for this reason he is all the more sensitive to the persons entrusted to his safekeeping. He can look at things realistically; he is in touch with his surroundings; he can make truly wise decisions. In him, we learn how to respond to God’s call, readily and willingly.

Yes, today we are called to be responsive people who can listen to God’s voice attentively and act on promptly to participate in God’s plan and to obtain the eternal joy in store for us. Most of us are not quite responsive to God, because our ears have dulled the grasp of the various noises around us. Most of us fail to listen to the voices of the good and the righteous, the elderly and the parents in the family, the church and the society, through whom God communicates to us messages for a holy and virtuous life. Today let us pray that we become responsive to God’s voice, remain in his presence as God’s children.

3.     St. Joseph – the Responsible Person

We all know that responsible person is the one who has an obligation to do something. They have control over or care for someone as part of one’s job or role. Being responsible would mean that one is dependable, faithful to promises, treat others fairly, trustworthy and honoring one’s commitments. They accept the consequences for whatever they do or say. So responsibility is an important assignment in life. Because it provides a sense of purpose and helps to have courage amidst adversities on an individual or social level.

Indeed we find St. Joseph to be a responsible person. As a father figure in the Holy Family, he does carpentry work to take care of the family. The bible mentions St. Joseph as the carpenter (Matt 13:55; Mk 6:3). Just like any father figure in a family does a job or engages in a profession to run the family and to take care of the family, so also St. Joseph portrayed as a carpenter.

St. Joseph takes responsibility in all that God asked or entrusted. He takes responsibilit to do what the Lord said in his dream, takes Mary as his wife and names the child as Jesus (Matt 1: 24-25). St. Joseph takes Mary and the child Jesus, escapes to Egypt as King Herod was seeking to kill Child Jesus as said by the angel the Lord (Matt 2: 13-16). St. Joseph brings back Mary and Jesus to Nazareth as said by the angel of the Lord (Matt 2: 19-23). St. Joseph takes the child and Mary to Bethlehem to participate in a census ordered by Caesar Augustus (Lk 2:2).

In all these incidents, with its ups and downs, helplessness and despair, St. Joseph remains a responsible person and does his responsibility so well, remains faithful to God by doing what God wanted of him. This is the love that St. Joseph manifests to God as a just man. This is the love St. Joseph manifested to Mary and child Jesus.

That’s what Pope Francis would say, “In fact, to love is not the pretension that the other person, or life, should correspond to our imagination. Rather, it means to choose in full freedom to take responsibility for one’s life as it comes. This is why Joseph gives us an important lesson. He chooses Mary with “his eyes open”. We can say “with all the risks”.

Further Pope Francis adds that caring, protecting, demands goodness, it calls for certain tenderness. St. Joseph appears as a strong and courageous man, a working man, yet in his heart we see great tenderness, which is not the virtue of the weak but rather a sign of strength of spirit and a capacity for concern, for compassion, for genuine openness to others, for love.” Yes love for God, Jesus and Mary makes St. Joseph endure hardships patiently, willingly and joyfully. Today we are called to express this same act of love for God in daily events and situations of life. It does not come all of a sudden. It is held by people who love God and have faith in his plans and purpose.

The Lord rewards the responsible people in his salvific event. That could have been the reason of this great reward to St. Joseph, as a foster father of Jesus, which God must have planned long before the history of humankind. The blessing of God in store for St. Joseph is seen in the first reading from Second Samuel. We hear that the Lord through Nathan communicates to build a dwelling place for God to pitch his tent. Yes that’s what happened in the history of humankind the fulfillment of God’s word, establishing kingdom of David forever through St. Joseph. Through St. Joseph the descendent of King David as mentioned in genealogies (Matt 1: 16; Lk 2: 4-5), God makes his son Jesus to dwell and pitch his tent on earth. So let us be responsible in the tasks we are entrusted with, God would surely reward those who are responsible in God’s work.

RESPOND:

Are we righteous in dealing with others and ourselves with love and mercy?

Are we responsive to God’s voice in the word of God and words of people at different point of time in our lives?

Are we responsible in the work and task that God has given, though at times its hard?

Let us pray we become righteous in mercy and compassion, responsive in prompt action and responsible in the tasks entrusted by God. Amen. 

God bless us all… Live Jesus

Fr.  Ramesh George MSFS