Our Gospel today centres around “How Jesus came to be born,” and how Mary was
a virgin before his birth-How is a virgin birth possible? It is scientifically
impossible!
How can one possibly explain something as magnificent and astonishing as a
Virgin Birth? Truly, we are called to walk by faith! Joseph also walked by faith. His trust in the Lord had to have come from a long life of surrender to God’s will. You men, reading this, should try to put yourself in Joseph’s shoes. Remember for a moment your own time of engagement. Suppose your fiancée told you, “Oh, by the way honey, I almost forgot to tell you: I’m pregnant. But don’t worry; I’ve never ever cheated on you.” I suspect your reaction would have been the same as Joseph’s, meaning that you immediately decide to get out of this relationship. Nevertheless, Joseph was a compassionate man, because he did not want to embarrass Mary any further, or submit her to the mandatory death penalty. So he decided to quietly break off their relationship in the legal,
Jewish way.
But God sends a special messenger, who speaks to Joseph in a dream. That will remind St. Matthew’s community—mostly converts from Judaism—about another Joseph who was also a dreamer and open to hearing God’s voice. Just as God rescued the first Joseph, son of Jacob from his difficulty in Egypt, so God rescues Joseph the carpenter from his sticky situation. The Genesis story tells us that the first Joseph was sent to Egypt to save lives, and that happened. The Matthew
story tells us about another Joseph who played an important role in saving lives, because the name Jesus means “God saves.” Thus, Joseph was a central player in the drama of our salvation history.
If we learn nothing else today, it should be this: these events were not under human control; they were always within the saving plan of God and totally under God’s control. Our events today are also under the control of our God. We need to keep our hearts open to God, always inviting him into our lives, and we need to surrender our will to His just as Joseph did.
KNOW YOUR CATECHISM!
Article (CCC 497) reminds us that the virginal conception of Jesus as a divine work surpasses all human understanding and
possibility: the angel said to Joseph about Mary his fiancée. that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit, and the Church sees here the fulfillment of the divine promise given through the prophet Isaiah: “Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son.
a virgin before his birth-How is a virgin birth possible? It is scientifically
impossible!
How can one possibly explain something as magnificent and astonishing as a
Virgin Birth? Truly, we are called to walk by faith! Joseph also walked by faith. His trust in the Lord had to have come from a long life of surrender to God’s will. You men, reading this, should try to put yourself in Joseph’s shoes. Remember for a moment your own time of engagement. Suppose your fiancée told you, “Oh, by the way honey, I almost forgot to tell you: I’m pregnant. But don’t worry; I’ve never ever cheated on you.” I suspect your reaction would have been the same as Joseph’s, meaning that you immediately decide to get out of this relationship. Nevertheless, Joseph was a compassionate man, because he did not want to embarrass Mary any further, or submit her to the mandatory death penalty. So he decided to quietly break off their relationship in the legal,
Jewish way.
But God sends a special messenger, who speaks to Joseph in a dream. That will remind St. Matthew’s community—mostly converts from Judaism—about another Joseph who was also a dreamer and open to hearing God’s voice. Just as God rescued the first Joseph, son of Jacob from his difficulty in Egypt, so God rescues Joseph the carpenter from his sticky situation. The Genesis story tells us that the first Joseph was sent to Egypt to save lives, and that happened. The Matthew
story tells us about another Joseph who played an important role in saving lives, because the name Jesus means “God saves.” Thus, Joseph was a central player in the drama of our salvation history.
If we learn nothing else today, it should be this: these events were not under human control; they were always within the saving plan of God and totally under God’s control. Our events today are also under the control of our God. We need to keep our hearts open to God, always inviting him into our lives, and we need to surrender our will to His just as Joseph did.
KNOW YOUR CATECHISM!
Article (CCC 497) reminds us that the virginal conception of Jesus as a divine work surpasses all human understanding and
possibility: the angel said to Joseph about Mary his fiancée. that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit, and the Church sees here the fulfillment of the divine promise given through the prophet Isaiah: “Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son.
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