4th Sunday of Advent
Isaiah 7:10-14
Matthew 1:18-24
The virgin birth is a miracle. Not only because it contradicts the natural order of things, but also because it was, so to speak, culturally impossible.
There was, of course, the ancient prophecy of Isaiah that the Lord would give this sign on his own initiative: ‘Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son.’ But how could this prophecy be fulfilled in a society where a woman who became pregnant while unmarried had to be sentenced to death by stoning according to the law of Moses?
In order to save the Blessed Virgin and the incarnate Son of God from this fate, another intervention by the angel Gabriel was necessary, as we heard in today’s Gospel.
Mary and Joseph were devout Jews. Joseph was a descendant of the House of David, the ancient royal family. He is described in the Gospel as a ‘righteous man.’ Mary was a descendant of the priest Aaron. According to legend, she was brought to the temple as a little girl and grew up there as a temple virgin, in a deeply religious atmosphere and under the greatest possible protection. So the best conditions for a marriage in ‘orderly circumstances.’
Let us try to put ourselves in Joseph’s position when he discovered that his fiancée was pregnant before they had lived together. What might he have felt? Disappointment? Anger? Presumably, Joseph’s initial storm of emotions eventually ebbed away, and he began to think about how best to deal with the situation.
As we have heard, Joseph was righteous. What does ‘righteous’ mean here? That he always obeyed the law under all circumstances? If that had been the case, he would have had to make Mary’s suspected adultery public, with the consequence that she would be stoned to death. If he did not do so, Joseph himself would have become guilty. St Jerome writes in his commentary on this passage: ‘But how is Joseph thus called just, when he is ready to hide his wife’s sin? For the Law enacts that not only the doers of evil, but they who are privy to any evil done, shall be held to be guilty.’
We can be sure that Joseph tried to follow the law of Moses as faithfully as possible. But in this case, he felt that simply obeying the law would be wrong. We must say it clearly: if Joseph’s righteousness had been simply obedience to the law, Mary and Jesus would not have survived. Let us remember this when we are in danger of condemning people who, in our opinion, have violated divine commandments.
Joseph combined his obedience to the law with mercy. St Augustine explains it this way: ‘If you alone have knowledge of a sin that any has committed against you, and desire to accuse him thereof before men, you do not herein correct, but rather betray him. But Joseph, being a just man, with great mercy spared his wife, in this great crime of which he suspected her. The seeming certainty of her unchastity tormented him, and yet because he alone knew of it, he was willing not to publish it, but to send her away privily; seeking rather the benefit than the punishment of the sinner.’
Joseph tried to live as virtuously as possible, rather than following the law by the letter. That is his justness and righteousness. Saint Chrysostom explains: ‘it should be known, that “just” here is used to denote one who is in all things virtuous. […] Therefore, being just, that is, kind and merciful, he was minded to put away privately her who, according to the Law, was liable not only to dismissal but to death. But Joseph remitted both, as though living above the Law. For as the sun lights up the world before it shows its rays, so Christ, before He was born, caused many wonders to be seen.’
According to this interpretation, it was already a miracle that Joseph was able to overcome a false adherence to the law and find a more virtuous solution. He could only do this because the grace of Christ was already at work in him.
But the idea of simply quietly releasing Mary from their engagement still did not allow Joseph to sleep peacefully. He continued to think about it. Something was not right about it. And this is where supernatural revelation had to come to the aid of human virtue. Only through the angel’s testimony could Joseph realise that his suspicion of Mary’s unfaithfulness was wrong. The angel’s words dispelled his anxiety and fear and showed him the way to life. And the name he was to give the child made it clear to him that this was about much more than his obedience to the law, and the honour of his family: ‘Mary will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.’
The Hebrew name “Jesus” means ‘God saves us’. We do not attain salvation from our sins through strict adherence to the law. Nor through purely human virtue. Salvation comes solely from the child that Mary bears. From the Son of God, who is also the son of Mary.
When Joseph awoke from his dream, he knew exactly what he had to do: He had to protect this child and his mother, whatever it took.
Let us learn from Saint Joseph to live virtuously and faithfully in this world. Let us learn from him to always listen to the living voice of God. Let us learn to obey God with willing readiness. Let us learn to value our own plans less than the will of God. Let us learn to even renounce honour, financial security and self-fulfilment, if this serves life. Let us do everything we can to protect unborn life. In everything we do, let us seek God’s greater glory. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, who willingly gave himself into the care of righteous Saint Joseph, help us to do so.
Amen.
