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A few years ago, St. Joseph came into my life in a new way. Not long before, I had taken the plunge from singlehood to married life, jumping into the deep end of the pool by marrying a widower with six children. I was hardly a natural for the role of stepmother (just ask the children!).
And though I was eager to play my part in this new family configuration, I felt overwhelmed and inclined to thoughts like, “Maybe Kevin should have married so-and-so—she’s wonderful with kids.”
It was a special grace when it dawned on me that Joseph of Nazareth probably understood exactly how I felt. After all, he not only sat across the dinner table from the Incarnate Word and the Immaculate Conception: He had to head the family they belonged to! Just maybe he hadn’t felt up to his role either.
Scripture doesn’t record a single word of Joseph’s, but as I reflected on Matthew 1 and 2, where he plays a major part, his silence spoke volumes. I noticed that he assumed his daunting family responsibilities with simple humility and faith in God’s wisdom, without fixating on his own inadequacies. I…
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Louise do you know that Joseph was about 17-18 when he took Mary his wife into his home, He had to live with two sinless people and full of Grace. What a challoenge!. He never complained or made negative remarks, just did what the angel instructed him to do. He did not question or sought an explanation like Mary did.The scripture says that he was a JUST MAN, well balanced..
I had an aunt in Italy, she was a nun, and very devout of Saint Joseph. She used to say that Saint Joseph had a unique privelege that other saints did not have: Being able to hold Jesus in his arms.
Auguri,
Dino Siervo