Mindful and ready to receive

 ‘…Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly.....’ (Matthew 1:19)

Matthew 1:18-25 (Year A: Advent 4 Sunday 18^th December 2016)

Another week to go! Those cards, those presents, those visits, hiding the toys in the attic or with the neighbours, those last-minute things…

Or maybe ….

Another Christmas with mixed feelings, family politics, tipsy uncles, that awkward visitor once a year and the silent, deadly dread of what a new year is likely to bring by way of developing illness, personal financial debt, job uncertainty or some other impending reality.

Whichever speaks most (or something of both?) we can find rest in the story of God-with-us or Emmanuel.  The name Emmanuel might sound more like the name of some impossibly impressive film star than the original Hebrew meaning in the prophecy of Isaiah (chapters 7-8). (See here for a chapter by chapter reflection on the Book of Isaiah.)

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin [young woman] will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel [God with us]

Hidden in the 7^th chapter of Isaiah towards the beginning of the ‘Emmanuel chapters’ from 7 to 12) is a little precious gem – for us who read this prophecy as Christians with the light of faith and experience of those who went before us.  And if some should doubt or not believe let them be open to the mystery and beauty of these chapters interspersed as they are with warnings and cries for change.

Line by line:

‘Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.’ (v. 18)

To be unmarried and pregnant was a source of scandal and severe punishment in relatively primitive societies. Such scandal and severe punishment was widely practiced until very recently in these parts of the world.  The great irony of this passage is that, were Joseph to have carried out the ‘letter’ of the Law he would have publicly denounced Mary and had her put to death and Jesus also. (See Chapter 22 of the Book of Deuteronomy, for example.)

The bible tells us that Mary was ‘found to be with child from the Holy Spirit’.  We do not know exactly how but we believe that Jesus – the Son of God – was born of the ‘Virgin Mary’ and that this was by the power of the holy spirit. This is a key and essential part of our ‘creed’.

‘Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly.’ (v. 19)

Some translations render the first part of this verse as: ‘Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law’.  Two vital components sit side by side in this verse:

1. The faithfulness of Joseph to the spirit of the ‘Law’; and
2. Joseph’s strong love and care for Mary and his motivation to not ‘expose her to public disgrace’.

His plan was to deal with the matter ‘quietly’. In other words he did not allow his faithfulness to the ‘Law’ in any way to speak or act that would have brought additional suffering to Mary. This was to be a private scandal dealt with in a very tactful and loving way. But, what was to emerge was not a private scandal…..

‘But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.’ (v. 20)

Joseph listened to his ‘dreams’. Put another way, he listened to his very own heart and, there, he found the calm voice of Love speaking through ‘an angel of the Lord’ and gently inviting him to not be afraid but, rather, take Mary as his wife.  This was going to be a crucial moment of decision and trust on the part of Joseph.  He could have doubted what he heard. He could have run way and still let Mary go without a public fuss. No, he said yes to God’s will in a way that made a huge difference not only to Mary but Jesus who was growing in the womb of Mary.

‘She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’ (v. 21)

Had Mary already told Joseph that the angel who visited her recently had also given the name of Jesus or Jeshua (the one who saves)?  It looks as if Mary kept all this to herself at least until Joseph had received the name of Jesus in his dream.

‘All this took place to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: ‘Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel’, which means, ‘God is with us.’ (v. 22-23)

The passage of Isaiah 7:14 is taken up in the Gospel of Saint Matthew and is applied directly to the birth of Jesus Christ. The travails of the people of Israel across the centuries and books and prophecies find their fulfilment in the promise and coming of the One who will save not just the chosen people of Israel but all peoples who turn to the Source of Salvation.  What a gem. What a precious pearl. A pearl of great price. (Matthew 13:44). Later Isaiah will write (45:3):

‘I will give you hidden treasures, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who summons you by name.’

‘In man there is a deep so profound, it is hidden even to him in whom it is’. St Augustine (Exposition on the Book of Psalms)

‘When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife,’ (v. 24)

Joseph was more than a dreamer and recipient of divine instruction. Joseph was a doer and a doer who would bring upon himself much adventure, hardship, dislocation, travel and wonder.  We do not know much about Joseph except for those rare occasions when he steps in and steps out again from the gospel stories.  Yet, his role is crucial to the unfolding of the story in those early years of Jesus’ life.  Assuming that Joseph had died before Jesus began his ministry could we surmise that Joseph’s passing deeply impacted on Jesus in some way? Might the commencement of Jesus’ ministry have been triggered by the death of Joseph? Death can have many impacts on those who are extremely close.

‘…. but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a son; and he named him Jesus.’ (v. 25)

For some reason the liturgists cut short the gospel extraction for this Sunday half-ways through a sentence crossing verses 24 and 25. Perhaps they thought that this particular part of a sentence did not ‘add’ anything to the key storyline for this Sunday? Some exegetes have been quick to rush in with an explanatory footnote that nothing can be read into ‘had no marital relations with her until she had borne a son’. Whatever interpretation is held we know that (a) the conception and birth of Jesus was ‘from the Holy Spirit’, and that (b) what happened after the birth of Jesus is not addressed by the gospel writers because (c) it is not relevant to the key message of the Gospel.

The situation that Joseph faced when he received Mary was one of uncertainty, doubt, a gradual revealing, a struggle and acceptance.  He received Mary – and Jesus – into his heart and home. He welcomed God’s ways which are not our ways and can, sometimes, stand in quiet defiance of the norms, prejudices and petty judgments of society.