Why Joseph?
In times of marriage crisis, promotion of genderism, eroticism and selfishness, Joseph shows the ideal of a strong man, faithful to God, his wife and hisfatherhood.
Neither macho nor meek husband
Saint Joseph is up to date for many reasons and deserves promotion. Contrary to sweet images, Joseph is a very strong man. Strong not in words, but in action. His holiness poses a powerful challenge to the dominant currents of contemporary culture. Why? Because gender ideology aggressively negates masculinity and femininity as basic vocations. Joseph is a man of flesh and blood. His career in life was, in accordance with God's call, to stand by the side of his beloved woman and be a father to Jesus. Secondly - we are witnessing a weakening of the family today, and St. Joseph is the guardian of the Family.
He himself was tempted to leave, but with God's help he overcame it. Another issuetoday - the paternity crisis. Joseph is an example of a father. He radiates by fatherhood in the name of God the Father himself. Today, such virtues as chastity, loyalty, diligence (denial of careerism) or humility (consent to remain in the shadow of more important people) are mocked. Joseph, with his unique relationship to Mary, with his "soft" virtues, irritates and disturbs, but at the same time attracts and inspires.
He is neither a macho type, nor an effeminate meek man. Let us add that Joseph is a patron of hard-working people, and at the same time a patron of contemplative prayer, which is an illustration of the slogan "Ora et labora". Finally, he was considered the patron of good death, because, according to tradition, he died in the presence of Jesus and Mary. The latter patronage also has a counter-cultural flavor. Death has been stripped of its majesty today. The euthanasia current proclaims that a decent death is one without pain and at our own request. Joseph patronizes the art of a wise, worthy of human being dying, in reconciliation with God, with hope in the Savior.
Saying nothing, he says a lot.
He does not utter a word on the pages of the Gospel. It appears in only a few evangelical episodes. He plays a supporting role in the drama of Incarnation (although one can also get an Oscar for a supporting role!). A few short Scriptural references to Joseph allow us to reconstruct the spiritual profile of his holiness. For example, the biblical word tekton, usually translated "carpenter," could also mean "builder." Joseph certainly worked with wood, but in a metaphorical sense he was the "builder" of the house - the House from which Jesus came. Isn't it every man's job to be a home builder? It is not necessary a villa with a swimming pool, but a space of love, security, bonding and protection of the weak that allows people to grow.
When God entered the relationship: Joseph and Mary already vowed the love to each other, everything changed. Joseph must fight a battle with himself. When he finds out that Mary is expecting a baby, he intends to leave her. He is experiencing the darkest night in his life. Why was he considering abandoning his fiancée? Did he know whose child she was carrying under her heart? God brightened the situation for Joseph. The angel says: “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife to you; for of the Holy Spirit what is conceived in her” (cf. Mt 1:20). Joseph got more light, but he had to make a decision.
If the figure of St. Joseph has to light us, we must translate this unique situation into the concrete of our life and vocation. Each of us have our own night, that is, situations that overwhelm us. When we do not see a good solution, and we are a bit worried about ourselves, about others. And the thought dawns in our head that it is best to remove ourselves from the lives of those with whom we are associated. Maybe that it would be better this way? Which of the marriages did not experience similar dilemmas? In everyvocation there is temptation to leave. The reasons are rather less pious, but the essence is the same. It seems to us that we will not be able to continue a relationship, and we are in a fight against the darkness of our own heart.
"When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home. " (Mt 1:24). It was awakening from the nightmare of uncertainty, getting out of the circle of suspicion, overcoming doubts about the meaning of being together. Joseph needed help from heaven to make a good decision. And how much more of such help from God's grace we need, people probably weaker than Joseph, need! God does not want broken families, single mothers without fathers. God wants the child to grow surrounded by a triple love: the mutual love of the spouses and the love of the father and the love of the mother. Joseph's dilemmas indicate the actuality of his model and his mission as an advocate. Each relationship has its dark nights, but God calls: "do not be afraid", "take to you" the one whom you want to reject.
Patron of the fight for chastity
On the pages of the Gospels, we see Joseph standing by his wife's side, he is with her and is a father to Jesus. Without fireworks, without publicity, in the ordinary way. Joseph did not write a treatise on family life, nor an encyclical on work or fatherhood. Yet his life, hidden in the Gospel of Jesus' Childhood, radiates male love, tender and strong at the same time.
The tradition of the Church has always emphasized that Joseph and Mary had an authentic conjugal love, but at the same time remained a virgin relationship. They were married to each other and at the same time remained " eunuchs who have made themselves so for the sake of the kingdom of Heaven." (cf. Mt 19:12) How to understand it? Mary and Joseph were connected by Jesus, that is, God Incarnate. Is it not that their home was a foretaste of heaven, about which the Lord would say that "they will not marry there or be married"? Let anyone who can understand to understand. Whoever does not understand, let him not mock. Joseph is a call, a model to control lust. How many married couples suffer from a lack of order in the sexual sphere? It is not always about betrayal, but also about treating your spouse objectively. Joseph, with his purity, is yet another challenge to a culture marked by pornography and eroticism "liberated" from responsibility, marriage and fertility. He can be the patron saint of those who are enslaved by sex or pornography, the patron saint of those fighting for pure love.
Joseph shows the way of a strong, God's life mainly for men, but not only. I would say that the sanctity of a woman and a man somehow depends on each other. Often a holy woman stands next to a saintly man and they both support each other on the path of faith. Joseph and Mary are the first of these holy couples. This Saint Joseph Year will be, I trust, an opportunity to discover more from His life.
Until Tomorrow
fr. george