From Genesis to the Psalms and Prophets, the Hebrew Scriptures are filled with reminders that God does the choosing. Joseph, a righteous and devout Jew, knew the Scriptures well and would have been very familiar with this characteristic of our loving and faithful God, who first chose Israel as his elected people.
We know Joseph as a protector from the very moment we hear of him in Matthew’s Gospel, learning that his betrothed was with child. Joseph’s immediate thoughts turn to protecting Mary from shame and disgrace by quietly divorcing her. But a visit in a dream by an angel of the Lord,
triggers his recollection that it’s God who does the choosing.
Knowing his betrothed as he did, it must have made absolute sense to him when the angel said God had chosen her as a sacred vessel to carry, bear and mother his only Son. Realizing and believing this, Joseph knew that God also needed a protector for this vulnerable mother and child. God’s Chosen Protector would need to provide for the many needs of mother and son, caring for and protecting them until the child reached adulthood.
We’re told that Joseph acted immediately when he woke from his dream, it resonated to his very core. Joseph fully realized that God had gifted and chosen him as protector of the Holy Family.
The reflection is written by Regina Wright, Program Coordinator
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