510. Second Sunday of St Joseph
Meditations no. 441 (unofficial computer-aided translation)
The sorrow and joy of St Joseph on learning that the Blessed Virgin was expecting a child.
Several months had passed since the Annunciation by St Gabriel to Mary, and the maternity of the Blessed Virgin was becoming obvious, to the point where her husband Joseph, for he was a right-minded man, and would not have her put to open shame, was for sending her away in secret.
The sorrow of the Holy Patriarch must have been very great. We know that St Joseph, our Father explained, when he realised that the Blessed Virgin was going to have a Child, thought about leaving her secretly. But not because he thought badly of her; no. Rather, because, when he became aware of that marvellous mystery, he considered himself unworthy to serve her. I am sure that this is why he wanted to leave her. In the presence of so great a mystery, he considered that the best course of action was to leave quietly, even though he suffered very much with that decision because of his great love for the Blessed Virgin.
While he was thinking these things, light came to him from God. Our Lord will never fail us, my children, be assured of that! Ecce, Angelus Domini apparuit in somnisā¦ Hardly had this thought come to his mind, when an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, and said, Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take thy wife Mary to thyself for it is by the power of the Holy Spirit that she has conceived this child (Matt 1: 20). He is the first man to receive this divine declaration of the reality of the Redemption, which has now been wrought. Pariet autem filium, et vocabis nomen eius Iesumā¦ And she will bear a son, whom thou shalt call Jesus, for he is to save his people from their sins (Ibid. , 21). And Joseph remains calm, serene, full of peace.
My children: doesnāt this man deserve all our love, all our gratitude? Is he not an example of faith and of fortitude? Is he not an example of purity of soul and body? Is he not our Father and Lord? Father and Lord is what I have called him for many years now, and that is what you call him all over the world.
On this second Sunday of St Joseph, on considering the sorrow of our Father and Lord in a situation which he does not fully understand, we can draw a first conclusion: not to let ourselves become disconcerted when God allows us to pass through situations in which it seems difficult to discern his Will. As with St Joseph, God sometimes tests our faith and our hope, in order to purify them and make them more supernatural, less dependent on earthly motives. But he does not abandon us, just as he did not forget the spouse of Mary.
St John Chrysostom comments that the angel speaks to him about David, from whom Christ was to come, and he does not allow him to remain troubled, since through the name of the most glorious of his ancestors he reminds him of the promise made to all his descendants. And his sorrow is transformed into joy in the face of this divine goodness. What feelings of thanksgiving and love must have welled up in the heart of Joseph!
St Joseph, Virginum custos et pater, takes special care of those who dedicate themselves to the service of Jesus Christ.
My children, I have great devotion to St Joseph, because he was a man who was strong in the faith; because he provided for his family, Jesus and Mary, with his hard work; because he safeguarded the purity of the Blessed Virgin who was his Spouse; and because he watched our Lord grow up for so many years.
Once confirmed in his mission as guardian of Mary and the Child who was to be born, St Joseph becomes virginum custos et pater, father and guardian of all those who, down the ages, would choose to follow Jesus and Mary closely, imitating them especially in their clean life.
For me, and I suppose for you as well, our Father commented on one occasion, that other prayer which the Holy Church gives us to say after Mass is a source of much consolation: virginum custos et paterā¦ Why is it not understood by those unfortunate people who do not want to look with clean eyes on the chastity and upon the holy love of our parents? Why is it not understood by those persons who cannot get it into their heads that it is possible for a weak creature to keep his or her whole being - body and soul - for God? If we are weak, God will supply his power. I am very weak, but the Lord will give me all his strength.
Virginum custos et pater, sancte loseph, cuius fideli custodiae ipsa Innocentia Christus Iesus et Virgo virginum Maria commissa fuitā¦ Blessed Joseph, guardian and father of virgins, to whose most faithful care was entrusted Innocence itself, Jesus Christ, and Mary, the Virgin of virgins. Is there a priest, a truly Christian soul, who could read this and not be moved? All my children, having a priestly soul, will be stirred to devotion, confidence, praise, and affection for Joseph, our Father and Lord.
Te per hoc utrumque carissimum pignus Iesum et Mariam obsecro et obtestor, ut me, ab omni immunditia praeservatum, mente incontaminata, puro corde et casto corpore Iesu et Mariae semper facias castissime famulari. We implore you, through Jesus and Mary, whom you received as a pledge, to preserve us from every defilement so that, with a clean spirit, a pure heart, and a chaste body we may always serve Jesus and Mary.
Joseph had been chosen by God so that he would dedicate himself completely to the service of Jesus and the care of Mary; so that his only concern would be to look after the Son of God and the Blessed Virgin. This mission of love led him to put his whole heart into that service. And love, when it is genuine, is total, exclusive, stable and lasting an irresistible spur to all forms of heroism.
To be chaste, according to the circumstances of the state of each person, is not a matter of age but of love. I donāt agree, our founder said on many occasions, with the traditional picture of St Joseph as an old man, even though it may have been prompted by a desire to emphasize the perpetual virginity of Mary. I see him as a strong young man, perhaps a few years older than our Lady, but in the prime of his life and work.
You donāt have to wait to be old or lifeless to practise the virtue of chastity. Purity comes from love; and the strength and joy of youth are no obstacle for noble love. Joseph had a young heart and a young body when he married Mary, when he learned of the mystery of her divine motherhood, when he lived in her company, respecting the integrity God wished to give the world as one more sign that he had come to share the life of his creatures. Anyone who cannot understand a love like that knows very little of true love and is a complete stranger to the Christian meaning of chastity.
Recourse to St Joseph, so that he will teach us to deal with Jesus with great refinement, above all in the Holy Mass.
The Church proposes to priests, as immediate preparation for the celebration of the Holy Sacrifice, a prayer that our founder liked very much, since it expresses well how all Christians -priests and lay people - ought to live in order to treat Mary and her divine Son with great refinement, as St Joseph did.
Our Father said in 1968: Deus, qui dedisti nobis regale sacerdotiumā¦ The priesthood is royal for all Christians, but especially for those whom God has called to his Work. We all have a priestly soul. Praesta, quaesumus; ut, sicut beatus Ioseph unigenitum Filium tuum, natum ex Maria Virgineā¦ Have you noticed what a man of faith he is? Do you see how he admired his Spouse, how he believes her incapable of the slightest sin, and how he receives the inspirations from God, the divine clarity, in that obscurity which was so tremendous for the most upright of men?ā¦
ā¦ ut, sicut beatus Ioseph unigenitum Filium tuum, natum ex Maria Virgine, suis manibus reverenter tractare meruit et portareā¦ My children, all of us, lay people and priests, carry God - Jesus - in our souls, in the centre of our whole life, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, giving supernatural value to all our actions. We touch him with our hands, so often!
ā¦ suis manibus reverenter tractare meruit et portareā¦ We donāt deserve it. It is only through his mercy, only through his goodness, only through his infinite love, that we carry him with us and are bearers of Christ.
ā¦ ita nos facias cum cordis munditiaā¦ That is the way how he wants us to be: clean of heart. Et operis innocentia - the innocence of deeds is rectitude of intention - tuis sanctis altaribus deservire. We serve him not only at the altar but in the whole world, which is an altar for us. All the works of men are done as if on an altar, and each one of you, in that union of contemplative souls which is your day, says in some way his Mass, which lasts twenty-four hours, in expectation of the Mass to follow, which will last another twenty-four hours, and so on until the end of our life.
ā¦ Ut sacrosanctum Filii tui corpus et sanguinem hodie digne sumamus, et in futuro saeculo praemium habere mereamur aeternum. My children: the teachings of Joseph are those of a father; they are wonderful teachings. Perhaps you will exclaim, as I do from my sad experience: I can do nothing, I have nothing, I am nothing. But I am a child of God, and our Lord, through the psalmist, announces to us that he fills us with loving blessings: praevenisti eum in benedictionibus dulcedinis (Ps 20: 4). He announces that he is preparing a way for us in advance - the general way of the Work and, within that, the path for each person - holding us fast to the way of Jesus, Mary and Joseph.