Mogen we trouw zijn zoals Jozef, en zo dicht
tot Gods hart gebracht worden.
If
one word had to be chosen to describe Joseph of Nazareth, the husband of Mary
and earthly father of Jesus, it would be the word faithful. There is actually
very little else to describe him. He doesn’t have any lines of dialogue in the
Bible; he doesn’t appear outside the birth narratives, except in the story of
the boy Jesus being left at the Temple; and he doesn’t ever act against the
direction of God, and often responds with immediacy (fleeing in the middle of
the night to Egypt). Joseph is faithful and responsive to the call of God.
In
this season of Lent, we would do well to emulate this characteristic of Joseph.
As we journey with Jesus through the preparation for his Passion, through Holy
Week, through Good Friday and into Easter, faithfulness and responsiveness is
what makes this journey possible and fruitful. We may just discover more of
God’s own faithfulness and care for us (as Joseph and Abraham did), as God is
always inviting us deeper into the Holy Family of God. At the close of this
short meditation, let this blessing prayed today throughout churches around the
world, bless you:
May
the love of the Holy Family surround you.
May
the joy that was Mary’s refresh you.
May
the faithfulness that was Joseph’s encourage you.
May
the peace of the Christ-child fill your lives
And
the blessing of God almighty,
the
Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be
among you and remain with you always. Amen.
"Carpenter Joseph Returning from Work", 2013, freestanding, metal sculpture at Dominican Priory, Charlottesville, VA. From Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. http://diglib.library.
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