Friday, March 19
Matthew, 1:16, 18-21, 24. Now 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…The angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph…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.”
| This mid-point
of Lent we are reminded of the birth of Jesus and the parents that Jesus was
entrusted to. This feast recounts the amazing “call” of Joseph to act with
courage and faith. Mary was betrothed to Joseph. In the Jewish tradition of
their time, it meant a written marriage contract between Mary and Joseph’s
parents had been agreed upon. “Mary was found with child,” not Joseph’s.
“What to do” became Joseph’s pressing question. Joseph was a good man, a
“righteous” person. He was, we are told, a carpenter by trade. Joseph had
an artist’s eye and could see forms and possibilities out of seemingly nothing.
In a dream Joseph was called to be the creative material that God would fashion
to be Jesus’ human father. Joseph needed to have faith in God and not be afraid. Act in Faith and without fear to how you hear God’s call. - Maggie Hopkins, OP, Assistant to the President for Dominican Mission Integration |
