ST. JOSEPH, PRAY FOR US

We have a God who never fail and will always fulfill what He said He would do. This prophecy of Samuel in today’s 1^st reading explains why Jesus was often referred to in the scriptures as Son of David. The long history of the chosen people of God speaks of a Messiah whom they have long waited for. The more we get familiar with the scriptures the better our understanding of the prophecies from the Old Testament in connection with the New Testament. The deeper we know more about them the better our amazement and appreciation of how God works in mysterious, wonderful and miraculous ways. The long span of more than 4 thousand years that date way back to the time of Abraham to the time of Jesus speak of God's faithfulness to His covenant with His people. I often hear people say that life is so uncertain and that nobody knows what's going to happen next. Everything that we do seems to be a gamble for we are so imperfect and bound to make mistakes and wrong decisions. There are times when we look at our lives and ask where it is headed, when are things going to happen and change for the better and what awaits us in the days to come. It is so appeasing to know that we have a God who always speaks to us through the events, people and circumstances that surround us. In today's 1st reading, it tells us that only time can tell, all we have to do is remain faithful to God and persevere to the end since it speaks of Samuel telling David of a prophecy which was fulfilled 900 years later in Jesus. God's promises will always be true and can stand the test of time all throughout generations. Before I got myself involved in bible study I was just taking the title of Jesus as "Son of David" for what it is, just a title they have decided to call him. After several sessions things become clearer to me and taken on a deeper meaning. People who address him in the New Testament as Son of David are people who know of the salvation history of Israel or the chosen people. They are the very people who have come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah because they have been promised of one who will come from the House of David as foretold by the prophets of old.  This is very interesting that we find our Christian faith rooted in Jewish heritage. The more we know of the ancestral beginning of Christianity the better our appreciation of it and eventually and inevitably lead to awe and marvel of God's wonders and miracles. St. Joseph is the foster father of Jesus and protector of the Holy Family. Joseph is an unwitting accomplice to the work of salvation. Mary, the Mother of Jesus, is his betrothed. He is given no options as to what he wants as regards the birth of Jesus. Yet somehow Joseph manages to allow the grace of God to lead and guide him such that he willingly accepts his role as foster father of Jesus and protector of the Holy Family. We, too sometimes find ourselves in a situation when we have no idea how things came about, it just happened without exerting any effort on our part. It just shows how God is able to do wonderful things in our life. All we need to do is follow the example of Joseph who at that time did not have any idea whatsoever that those were going to happen to him. Joseph is a righteous man; he stands in the line of righteous men stretching back to Abraham. It was mentioned above that he had little choice about the direction of his life. However, we must not fail to reflect upon the option that he could have simply walked away and left Mary and the child in her womb to fend for themselves. He could not do this as he was a good man and could see that Mary was going to need his help. Though he may seem to be a somewhat silent observer in the work of salvation, he plays a much greater and more important role than most give him credit for. He allowed God to lead and guide him through that situation which he obviously did not plan or intend to happen.  In whatever situation we are in right now, whether it's all part of our plans or not, let us continue to allow the grace of God to work for He can surely bring about goodness and prosperity in our lives. We may be in a situation where we are not truly satisfied with what is happening around us but we must continue to believe. What a glorious promise from God to His faithful servant David. He has the same words for those who will faithfully and perseveringly follow His lead. If we can only look back and examine carefully our lives in the past then we can gauge from there if we have been totally obedient to His will in our lives. Are we missing out on something? Let us be quick and diligent to assess our lives so as not to miss out on the best things that God has in store for us. We can always count on God to carry out the plans He has for His people and always be true to His word. There is no greater joy in the knowledge of the hope, joy and love that Jesus is our Savior. Amen. Hallelujah!

2 Samuel 7:4-5, 12-14, 16

4 The LORD spoke to Nathan and said: 5 “Go, tell my servant David, 12 ‘When your time comes and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your heir after you, sprung from your loins, and I will make his kingdom firm. 13 It is he who shall build a house for my name. And I will make his royal throne firm forever. 14 I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me. 16 Your house and your kingdom shall endure forever before me; your throne shall stand firm forever.’”

If we enter into agreement with any person we have to make sure that we are able to fulfill it and vice versa for the person whom we make a contract with. It is so disappointing when things do not turn out the way it should be and terms and conditions are not followed. I guess, we have all encountered mishaps and are dismayed along the way.  It is always best that if there's someone whom we should observe and maintain a covenant with then there should be no other but God. For His words and promises will always remain true. As in Habakkuk 2:2-3, "Write down the vision clearly upon the tablets, so that one can read it readily. For the vision still has its time, presses on to fulfillment, and will not disappoint; If it delays, wait for it, it will surely come, it will not be late." We can be assured that His covenant will last and stand firm. Thousands of years have passed and only one name remains tried and true and continues to stand the test of time and even eternity, the name above all names, Jesus. If we are to look closely and pay attention to the succession of events of the salvation history or covenant history which goes back to the time of Adam & Eve and Noah and dates way back to 1800 BC during the time of Abraham, Moses (1200), David (means the favored one,1000), Exodus (600) to the birth of our Lord Jesus we will see God’s faithfulness and steadfast love for His people.  In this time line are significant events that happened from the time of Creation when God created man who fell into sin and became unfaithful and how God continuously called us back to Him by showing us who He really is throughout the length of time. As dramatic events unfold, like the entrance of the Israelites to the promised land, the pockets of rebellion as they took over the 12 tribes and settled into a life of monarchy (kings) from their 1st king (Saul) to King David and King Solomon, the time of David is described as the greatest time of the people of God. Today’s psalm speaks of how God is pleased with His faithful servants and promises to maintain kindness forever. As we celebrate the feast of St. Joseph we look at him in the eyes of the Jews, he was the person who gave Jesus His proper name and claim as descendant of King David. Joseph was more of a foster father, because he was truly the legal father of Jesus. In like manner, he was not just the guardian of Mary. Before the law and traditions of Israel, he was the husband of Mary of Nazareth, the one who legitimized the “virgin birth” of Jesus to Mary. In the church’s liturgy, Joseph, aside from the Blessed Mother, is the only saint mentioned in the “Divine Praises” for the Eucharistic Benediction.  Then, according to experts on the apparitions of Fatima, Joseph was the only saint who appeared with the Blessed Mother in those phenomena that happened in Portugal." All these things tell us that there is really no cause for worry and fear for we have a God who is faithful to all His promises. We should always be reminded of this reality and never doubt that everything will come to pass. Amen. Hallelujah!

Psalm 89:2-3, 4-5, 27, 29
R: The son of David will live for ever.
1 [2] The promises of the LORD I will sing forever; through all generations my mouth shall proclaim your faithfulness, 2 [3] for you have said, “My kindness is established forever”; in heaven you have confirmed your faithfulness. (R) 3 [4] “I have made a covenant with my chosen one, I have sworn to David my servant: 4 [5] Forever will I confirm your posterity and establish your throne for all generations.” (R) 26 [27] “He shall say of me, ‘You are my father, my God, the rock, my savior!’ 28 [29] Forever I will maintain my kindness toward him, and my covenant with him stands firm.

We can see from the readings today that the big moments of history are based on the simple, intuitive comprehension of the faith of David, Abraham and Joseph, the so called the Anawim of God. We have all the reasons to rejoice and be glad. God is always true to His word and fulfills His promises to the poor in spirit. We can trust God to always bring about the best situation for us. Especially when we look back at the times when we think we are in big trouble. God has the ability to bring about good in everything. The will of God is really wide between choices that are good and good. It is always a consolation to know that whichever way we go, granted of course that these choices are all good, we can also be assured of the wide array of good things waiting to happen to us. If our God is faithful, so must we be faithful, too. God guarantees to fulfill all His promises to those who remain steadfast in their faith. Believe and have faith, push aside all doubts that God is able to fulfill all his promises. Be proud and shout to the whole world of his goodness. Today's 2^nd reading should make us realize that we have a God who guarantees to fulfill all His promises for as long as we have faith in Him. We should believe what has been promised to us and it shall be done. Amen. Hallelujah! 

Romans 4:13, 16-18, 22

It was not through the law that the promise was made to Abraham and his descendants that he would inherit the world, but through the righteousness that comes from faith.

For this reason, it depends on faith,so that it may be a gift, and the promise may be guaranteed to all his descendants, not to those who only adhere to the law but to those who follow the faith of Abraham, who is the father of all of us,…He believed, hoping against hope, that he would become “the father of many nations,” according to what was said, “Thus shall your descendants be.” 22 That is why “it was credited to him as righteousness.”

Today’s gospel speaks of the Annunciation scene of Joseph when the angel said to him not to be afraid to take Mary into his home. He woke and did so as the angel had commanded him. God’s beauty and Mary are one in the heart of Joseph. Pope John Paul II said in his book that Joseph did not suspect Mary but was afraid and held back since did not want to interfere in this great mystery of God’s plan. He has great respect for her holiness and felt unworthy but the angel assured him and he obeyed. We can see the inner drama of Joseph and the test of faith that we sometimes think holy people do not encounter. We have this notion that when we’re holy we don’t have to walk in the darkness of faith. Even Mary had her dark night of faith in Calvary. We are invited to emulate her faith and Joseph’s too. We can see Joseph’s radical humility at his disposal to God’s will and his quiet and firm determination to obey God and be at the service of God’s plan. He shares in the very faith of Mary. They have a union of hearts and souls through marriage since he is the husband of Mary and so is considered the father of Jesus although not biological. In this union, we see the humble service of Joseph. He does not speak any words and yet achieves his great holiness through his loving service to love the Church and Jesus and takes Mary into his home. The word of God comes to us through the Church and calls us like Joseph to bring out the fullness of Christ in whatever situation. Joseph is there at the birth, the presentation, the circumcision, the flight to Egypt and all other mysteries of the life of Jesus. Jesus comes to us in the beautiful institution of the sacraments we should radiate His presence to the world. This is the challenge being posed on us today as we celebrate the Solemnity of St. Joseph, husband of Mary. He is an icon of faith and obedience to God. He followed well the example of his ancestors, Abraham and King David. We can see how the hand of God made all things possible throughout all generations what He said would be. We should never have any doubt in our minds that God has a great plan for all of us and He is able to carry them out for our welfare. We find out from the gospel that Joseph had other plans and intentions in mind but God’s plan and will prevailed over him. This is how we should follow his example. We may have other things in mind and think that it is for the best but we must not lose sight of what God has in mind for us. We may be encountering some disappointments and struggles at the moment as most people do but our faith, hope and love should always rest firm in the Lord who is able to make us stand firm forever. These experiences should give us the courage and conviction to keep us going and not be afraid since it could help us build up confidence and faith in God who never abandon nor forsake. God will not allow us to go through something without seeing us through it. There are so many parallels in today’s readings pointing to St. Joseph and the angel in our very own lives if we come think of it and look at it very closely.  When things happen to us in an entirely different manner that we imagined and planned it to be let us always remember that God is faithful and would surely send us angels along the way who would guide us to the right path. It has always been divine intervention rather than what people commonly say as coincidence, since with God there is no such thing. We may never have thought things to happen and be the way it turned out but we must always yield to the will of God. It is through obedience that we can show our unwavering faith in God.
We may think that if we will just go by what is fair then we are already justified. Sometimes we encounter circumstances that require us to do more than what is fair. We are challenged by God to always deepen our faith with one step more. Joseph in today's gospel did not go with what is fair for him during his time but did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him. With that I quote what Companion says of this:, "Jesus’ birth is no sure thing given that He is a child out of wedlock in a world where Mary could have been stoned for this! Following the will of God will always have its challenges and difficulties but they should not daunt us to the point that we give up. This would be giving in to the sin of despair, a response unbefitting a disciple of Jesus. Let us resolve that no matter what the future holds for us we will persevere in doing God’s will to the end."  St. Joseph is an ever faithful father and protector to Jesus and he could be one to us too. There were several circumstances that I could attribute to the intercession of St. Joseph. I can still remember when I had to make a major decision way back in Oct 2007 and at that same time was gifted with a rare and miraculous sign of being able to get a rose petal with an angel imprinted on it in a healing service I attended. This gave me the courage and conviction to keep on going and not be afraid. I should say that it helped me a lot during that time in building up my confidence and faith in God who never abandon nor forsake. There are times when we have doubts about a certain decision and the Lord sends us his message through an angel it could be disguised in a dream or in any other manifestations but what's most important is to listen to God's message and act on it like what Joseph did.  We all have our plans in life and these are all good plans, I suppose. We should know by now that whatever it is that we plan to achieve, God is with us all the way. But sometimes our plans are just good but not the best. Joseph being a righteous man remained calm and quiet in the midst of all these unexpected developments in his life. Thus he was sensitive and receptive to the angel's instruction to him. He did as he was told with all obedience. We can learn a great deal from Joseph's trusting attitude in God's plan over his personal plans. Sometimes we get disappointed at how things turn out in our lives but we just have to believe and have faith that there can never be something better than what God has planned for us. St. Joseph's example reminded us of this virtue that in spite the uncertainties of events he continued to trust in God's goodness and followed what he was told to do. We should remain faithful and obedient to the Lord and let go of our plan in exchange of God's plan. St. Joseph inspires us to always do what the Lord is leading us to do. Amen. Hallelujah!

Matthew 1:16, 18-21, 24 (or Luke 2:41-51)

Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Of her was born Jesus who is called the Christ. 18 Now 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. 19 Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. 20 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. 21 She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” 24 When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home.