MEETING
JOSEPH
VOCATION PAGE
Vol. XV
No. 10
November 2003
God our Father,
Lord of the harvest,
Continue to guide and empower
The worldwide mission of the Church,
So that your desire to make disciples
Of all nations may become a reality in our day.
Inspire all those engaged in the missions
With zeal, strength, perseverance and hope,
So that, having gone forth to sow the seed
Of your Word in every land,
They may rejoice in a rich harvest
Of souls for the Kingdom of God.
Inspire also our young people of today
To commit themselves generously
To your son Jesus, the good news.
Give a firm support to their faith, hope and love
So that they may know your loving purpose in their lives.
This we ask in the name of Jesus our Lord,
Who loves and lives
And cares for all your children.
Amen.
Waking
Dreams
ST. JOSEPH - FOSTER FATHER OF JESUS
In the gospels, we have the record of many of Jesus’ words and deeds, and we are also told much about Mary. Yet, surprisingly, the four evangelists do not record a single word spoken by Joseph. In fact, we knew very little about this man. We do know, though, that he was a descendant of King David (Mt 1:16-17), so at least his family roots are well known to us. His trade as a carpenter tells us that he belonged to the lower class (Mt 13:55).
Protector of promise
We can best understand Joseph’s vocation and mission through the role he played in the life of Jesus and Mary. This man was important in the so called God the Father’s “big plan”. He helped God to become close and familiar to us, to be “Emmanuel” (God-with-us) for all of us, to be a God who became part and parcel of our human history.
This is a real piece of good news for all of us. Why? Because for the first time our God who was seemingly distant from us was now in our midst! A God who is one of us – made of flesh and blood (Jn 1: 14). The Word was made flesh, and he came and lived among us.
This is God’s plan for the redemption and liberation of his people. Joseph played the role of making this plan possible because of his cooperation with God’s desires. And this plan still continues in the hearts of men and women who desire to make Jesus - the Emmanuel -more and more real in the lives of the people.
This was the task of Joseph and is shared with us, too, by the Father. We too should make Jesus more and more attractive and appealing to the circle of our own families, friends, and work-mates by the way we live our lives. And more – to the peoples who do not know Christ yet: this is the main task of the missionaries who courageously leave their families, friends and country and go to other countries to make the Emmanuel known, loved and lived.
Dare to dream?
It was not easy for Joseph to accept the fact that Mary was pregnant (Mt 1: 18) Who helped him bear this confusing mystery? In a dream, an angel helped Joseph gain understanding of what was happening in his life. Poor Joseph swallowed his pride, accepted the angel’s instructions, and received Mary into his home as his wife.
I find no fault in dreaming. Usually, dreams happen when our eyes are closed, but to face life we have to open our eyes lest we fall from our beds. Joseph opened his eyes. He discerned and reflected on what was happening in his life. When he returned to his senses and was fully awake, his dream meant something. He realized that God was talking to him, that the invitation came from God himself. Joseph judged that his dream was not an illusion but was becoming a reality.
That’s why we need to ask ourselves if our dreams are mere illusions or reality. The answer lies in our hands. Our reflection must be a quest for the truth. And it has to be done with a sincere attitude or else our dreams will take us nowhere.
Dreams for today
Many of us may engage in daydreaming. It’s good - since it doesn’t cost a penny, but what is destructive here is when we convince ourselves that our daydreams are real. This just leads to disillusionment. Dreams must be double checked against our own reality. In truth, vocation is a call for action. If it doesn’t meet this minimum requirement, then such daydreaming is useless. Maybe it is just taking us for a ride or even for a flight from the reality.
Many of the young people I meet always want to have a hint or a clue to know whether they have the calling or not. The litmus test for this is for the person to ask themselves whether their idea of vocation is helping them to be a better Christian, a service-oriented person. Is it influencing their life for good?
If there is no trace of progress in their lives then better go for an overhauling process and humbly start all over again, continuing to explore and ask questions of people who can be of help. Just like Joseph: he exhausted all the means better to understand the hand of God working in his life. He was not overwhelmed by the news that he would be the foster-father of the baby Jesus: he just maintained his focus and took one day at a time.
Carpenter by trade
We all know that Joseph was never a headliner or a degree holder. He continued to be a simple person, a carpenter, earning a living for his wife and son. The dignity he thus gained for his trade was remarkable. Even though he did manual work, he still gave dignity to the works of his hand.
St. Paul said that “those who do not work should not eat” (2 Thes 3: 10). That’s why all must work to support themselves and their entire family, thus continuing God’s creation here on earth. So much so that Pope Pius XII established the feast of St. Joseph the Worker on May 1: thus Labor Day is always associated with the figure of Joseph to give recognition to the basic rights of workers.
Man of prayer
Joseph became a source of blessing and holiness for his family. His quietness suggest that he was a man of prayer. Why? Because when he was in the dilemma whether to accept the fact that Mary was pregnant and didn’t know what to do, he beseeched God’s help by praying. And we all know that he got the answer to his problem in prayer. The Angel said to him, “Do not be afraid to marry Mary. The child that she is carrying is the child of God”.
Oftentimes we bank on our human strength and knowledge in confronting the many problems and difficulties that life may bring. Yet we have to consider another truth: that we cannot discount the intervention of God in our lives. He knows better about what is best for his children. Thus we are challenged by Joseph not to rely on human strength but to cling to God.
A thousand deaths
After the early years of migration and displacement, Joseph realized that his worries and problems did not end, but even so he continued to dispose himself to respond to the needs of his family. In him we find a person who is an exemplary image of the good provider, a protector.
As an earthly father, he must have died a thousand deaths in taking care of his wife and child, both of whom he had accepted in good faith as belonging finally to the real Father of all. So it is with every sensible biological parent, every true spouse. Raising hildren nowadays is a tough job. The fact is that parents cannot stop their children from encountering the reality of sin. They cannot be with them twenty-four hours a day. What they can do is to equip them with the “tools” to confronting reality. After that it’s up to the children to find ways of dealing with it.
A different man
Joseph was a different kind of man. Amidst the mystery that he desired to understand without finding a final answer, he remained with his Mary and little boy Jesus. Now that’s a real man. Let us learn from this quiet and simple person – Joseph, a real father and a humble manual worker. St. Joseph, pray for us. Intercede for all the fathers who have gone astray their biological fathers because of fear, shame and embarrassment. For God’s sake listen to the pleas, cries and longing of these families, as they want for love and care.<WM
Fr. Aldrin Janito MCCJ
Copyright©2003 World Mission Magazine
St. Joseph
Write to Fr. Aldrin
Comboni Missionaries 282Roosevelt Ave
1105 Quezon City M.M
Philippines
Tel. 414-3164/372-5859
or E-mail:
to WORLD MISSION