Originally scheduled for Dec. 1

‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit’. Matthew 1:20

We actually know very little about Joseph. What we do know is mostly from Matthew’s gospel. That he was from David’s line and therefore of the descendants of Judah. Later we will find out he was a ‘carpenter’ as indicated when Jesus starts His ministry, as the locals said ‘is this not the son of the carpenter’. Other than that, he seems to be a sidebar. But this man, this sidebar plays a far more significant role than he is often given credit for. We know he was not a wealthy man. A ‘carpenter’ is more translated into ‘handyman’. The kind of man today you would hire to fix a leaking sink, paint your house, patch drywall, clean your gutters. He might have worked stone. He wasn’t anything special, else he would have been mentioned as a craftsman or tradesman. Instead, just a handyman. Makes a living, but nothing special. But he was special. For he was asked to take on something that most men today would have a hard time accepting. He was being asked to set aside any hopes and aspirations for himself and raise a child that was not his. He undoubtably had to suffer whispers and glances behind his back, he was from Nazareth, a village of around 400 people. And small town people like to talk. He would have had to defend Mary’s honor, and even Jesus’ as a child. Even tho he knew who Jesus was, the Angel told him very specifically, surely he was subject to the comments and ridicule. The very idea that Mary, his wife was carrying a child that was not his would have been hard enough. But the idea that the Messiah was going to be born to such a lowly member of society, altho the lineage fit the prophesy, did not fit the idea that the people of the time had: that the Messiah would be a military leader and overthrow their Roman overlords. Trying to say that your wife was miraculously carrying the one the prophets spoke would seem pretty ridiculous. But he did it. With no thought of how his life had been ruined, no jealousy shown. instead, he raised the child and protected Mary. He had Jesus circumcised as the law dictated, He took him to Jerusalem at his 12th birthday as was expected. And after he was gone, the only mention was as ‘the carpenter’ who had a son. This carpenter set aside his own life and dedicated it to protecting Mary and the Christ child.

Joseph dearest, Jospeh mine, help me rock this child divine,

Sing to Him a lullaby, ‘Now  sleep and rest, your slumber blest, dear Jesus

-Josef Lieber, Josef Mein, 14th Century traditional German carol