Page 123 - Reflections on St. Joseph

life, in the silences of the night and through a dream. Thus it is clear that the mission of
Joseph depends upon a word and the fact that by means of a word, he enters into connection
with God.The attitude of listening is an essential aspect of his way of life and draws upon his
interiority. It is in this that he perceives the messages and matches his deeds. On the other
hand, Joseph’s response is not expressed in words, but manifested with action, for which the
Apostolic Exhortation says that “the Gospels speak exclusively of what Joseph ‘did’”(n.25)
without mentioning any of his words. Three times by dreams and every other time, he only
receives a message and a partial explanation. Joseph listens through the interiority of his
being, that is to say, his “heart”, which in biblical anthropology is not the seat of sentiments
and emotions, but of the intellect and personal identity. In the heart he matures his plans
and choices, and from it come his decisions and judgments. The heart is the organ with
which God “is heard”, and in it is measured one’s dedication to God, and by means of it one
can discern the order of the world and of life according to God’s teachings. (M. Pina Scanu).

4.2. In the presence of the Mystery, Silence

Silence, capstone and guardian of interiority, is recognized by spiritual tradition as the
essential element for an authentic spiritual life and for prayer. Our Saint seeks to
discern the will of God in silence, and then, without comment, leaves Nazareth with his
young pregnant spouse, to go to Bethlehem. There, in silence, he contemplates the
miracle of the Birth of the Son of God, the arrival of the shepherds and the visit of the
Magi. Alongside the manger, after the birth of Jesus, he not only hears the song of the
angels, the voices of the shepherds and the wise words of those from the east, but also
perceives the silent presence of his spouse, Mary. He too takes on Mary’s attitude of
“keeping everything and meditating on it in her heart” (Lk 2,19).

The text of the Apostolic Exhortation adds: “Even to his work as a carpenter at his home
in Nazareth, he extends the atmosphere of silence, which accompanies everything that
refers to the figure of Joseph. It is in the silence though, that the interior profile of this
figure is revealed in a special way. The Gospels speak exclusively of that which Joseph
‘did’; however, they also allow us to discover in his ‘deeds’, wrapped in silence, a climate
of profound contemplation” (25).

4.3. Interior Struggle

In the interiority of the heart, place of spiritual struggle, among the various
possibilities, options, thoughts, suggestions and dynamics, occurs Joseph’s
discernment process, a category of Ignatian spirituality, re-proposed to us today, with
new energy in the pontificate of Pope Francis.

In Matthew, the Guardian of the Redeemer makes his first appearance as a man in
torment, searching for a response to the problem of the pregnancy of his spouse. The
manifestation and the closeness of this mystery fascinans et tremendum shakes his life
and causes his personal plans to crumble. However, God takes the initiative and offers
him a time of discernment to be able to embrace the incomprehensible.

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Reflections on st. joseph