Righteous men

Fifty years ago (July 27, 1970), my father (Afton) was called home to Christ. 

My reflections in this forum are usually homiletic on specific Scripture passages, but today, as on every July 27^th, I’m being led by the Holy Spirit to reflect on fatherhood; specifically, the Patron Saint of fatherhood, St. Joseph and my dad. 

Everything we know about the husband of Mary and the foster father of Jesus comes from Scripture.  Even though there are few words about him in the Bible, we still get to know quite a lot about him. 

We know he was a carpenter, a working man, because the skeptical Nazarenes ask about Jesus, "Is this not the carpenter's son?" (Matthew 13:55).

He wasn't rich because when he took Jesus to the Temple to be circumcised and Mary to be purified he offered the sacrifice of two turtledoves (or a pair of pigeons), allowed only for those who couldn’t afford a lamb (Luke 2:24).

 Despite his humble work and means, Joseph came from a royal lineage.  Luke and Matthew disagree a little about the details of Joseph's genealogy but they both mark his descent from David, the greatest king of Israel (Matthew 1:1-16 and Luke 3:23-38).  Indeed, the angel who first tells Joseph (in a dream) about Jesus greets him as "son of David," a royal title used also for Jesus.

We know Joseph was a compassionate, caring man.  When he discovered Mary was pregnant after they had been betrothed, he knew the child wasn’t his and was as yet unaware that she was carrying the Son of God.  He planned to divorce Mary according to the law, but he was concerned for her suffering and safety.  He knew that women accused of adultery could be stoned to death, so he decided to divorce her quietly and not expose her to shame or cruelty (Matthew 1:19-25).

We know Joseph was man of faith, obedient to whatever God asked of him without knowing the outcome.  When the angel came to Joseph in a dream and told him the truth about the child Mary was carrying, Joseph immediately and without question or concern for gossip, took Mary as his wife.  When the angel came again to tell him that his family was in danger, he immediately left everything he owned, all his family and friends, and fled to a strange country with his young wife and the baby.  He waited in Egypt without question until the angel told him it was safe to go back (Matthew 2:13-23).

We know Joseph loved Jesus. His one concern was for the safety of this Child entrusted to him.  Not only did he leave his home to protect Jesus, but upon his return settled in the obscure town of Nazareth out of fear for His life.  When Jesus stayed in the temple after a family pilgrimage to Jerusalem when He was twelve years old, we’re told Joseph (along with Mary) searched for Him with great anxiety for three days (Luke 2:48).

We also know that Joseph treated Jesus as his own son because over and over the people of Nazareth say of Jesus, "Is this not the son of Joseph?" (Luke 4:22)

We know Joseph respected God.  He followed God's commands in handling the situation with Mary and going to Jerusalem to have Jesus circumcised and Mary purified after Jesus' birth.  We’re told that he took his family to Jerusalem every year for Passover, something that couldn’t have been easy for a working man.

There is much we wish we could know about Joseph; where and when he was born, how he spent his days, when and how he died.  But God, through Sacred Scripture, has left us with the most important and only thing we need to know, which is who he was; "a righteous man" (Matthew 1:18).

The more I reflect on this great and holy man, my thoughts keep turning to another man who had many of the same traits— a loving, hard-working husband and father; poor, humble, and righteous, who was called to his reward fifty years ago today.

O God, You have commanded us to honor our father and mother.  Have compassion in Your mercy, on the soul of my father; forgive him his sins, and grant that I may see him in the joy of eternal brightness.  I ask you this through Your Son Jesus Christ, our Lord, Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, One God forever and ever.  Amen.