***
Gospel: Matthew 1: 18-24
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.
Such was his intention when, behold,
the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,
“Joseph, son of David,
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.”
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:
Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall name him Emmanuel,
which means “God is with us.”
When Joseph awoke,
he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him
and took his wife into his home.
The Gospel of the Lord.
***
***
We’re now one week away from Christmas!
Can you feel the tension in our readings? We’re so close that today’s Gospel gives us the Christmas story early from Joseph’s perspective.
What might he say to us from his experience of Christmas?
When God enters your life, buckle up buttercup!
***
Joseph was an ordinary man. He never wrote a book. Never went to college. Never held public office. Never lived in a major city or even journeyed far from his home. He was far from royalty, a simple carpenter who earned his daily bread by the sweat of his brow.
Perhaps the best thing that ever happened to him was meeting Mary, his bride-to-be. But now she’s pregnant…and the child isn’t his.
Imagine how you’d feel.
Anyone standing in Joseph’s shoes would’ve been heartbroken. Perhaps we’d be filled with anger or begin plotting our revenge.
But the Gospel tells us that Joseph is a “righteous” man, a good man, who decides to divorce Mary quietly.
Under the Law, he could’ve taken her to court and sued her for his dowry. He could’ve exposed her to shame, or even had her stoned. But Joseph takes the path of least resistance, tempering justice with mercy.
That’s a virtue every Christian can learn from: mercy. When someone we love hurts or disappoints us, instead of seeking revenge or entertaining angry thoughts, we treat them with mercy, instead.
What might that look like for me, treating others with greater mercy?
***
Even after Joseph “resolves” the problem of a scandalously pregnant fiancé, his story is only beginning. God invites him to accept a future he never imagined.
Buckle up, buttercup.
***
Joseph is told in a dream that his worst nightmare – Mary becoming pregnant out of wedlock – was, in fact, the will of God. It was an act of God.
She conceived a son by the power of the Holy Spirit!
No human wisdom will help here.
Anyone would’ve been baffled. Perhaps this strange turn of events would’ve made us even more bitter.
But, immediately after awakening from this dream, Joseph takes Mary into his home, showing that he’s not only a man of mercy.
He’s also a man of action.
He doesn’t do what I might do and take a forty-day silent retreat to process what he’s heard. He doesn’t pause or question. As soon as he opens his eyes, he welcomes Mary, and this child that isn’t his, into his home. He accepts them both on God’s terms.
The rest of Joseph’s life becomes caught up in God’s plan – a divine plan – a plan that is far greater than himself.
What I find most striking of all is the fact that the Gospels never record Joseph saying anything. He’s the silent hero of the Christmas story.
***
As Christians, we tend to assume that the idea of God entering into our lives is a good thing. A great thing. It’s what brings us to church on Sunday!
But asking God to guide us can also be risky and, at times, upsetting.
Just look at what happened to Joseph. He was stretched to the brink. Instead of living life on his own terms, he became a foster father, accepting a future he never imagined. He becomes a man living in surrender.
How might our lives change if we had the heart of Joseph? Would we act more boldly on God’s Word? Would we accept a future we haven’t planned or carry a cross we didn’t ask for?
***
The Christmas story reminds us that, when God enters into your life, the world becomes unpredictable, divine, other-centered. Fear gives way to trust.
Deep down, it’s what we all want – God at the center of our lives.
But be prepared. When God takes over, buckle up, buttercup.
***
***
Image credits: (1) Buckle Up Buttercup, Words Quotes Carmilla (2) Saint Joseph with the Infant Jesus, Guido Reni (3) SooToday.com