Page 44 - Reflections on St. Joseph

On a human level, David never stood a chance when Samuel visited his family. In fact, in this
encounter he is never mentioned by name. It is the mystery of God, who raised him from
nothingness, the lowest of the sons of Jesse, living in an obscure village, to become not only the
king of Israel, but also the model of all kings that followed him.
In the same way, God chose a man, Joseph, from the obscure town of Nazareth, and raised him, not
only to holiness, but to the heights of heaven, so that nobody is greater than he except for the
Blessed Virgin Mary. Interestingly enough, an apocryphal account of Joseph names him one of the
many suitors for Mary. While not necessarily credible, it serves to highlight the analogy between
David and Joseph. Just as David surely would have been rejected by Samuel, so Joseph would have
been, if he had not been chosen by God through the sign of a flowering staff. There is nothing that
can be pointed to as evidence that Joseph was anything special in appearance; yet he was different
from any other son of David, and from the people around him, because of his profound interior life.

As soon as they accepted God’s will, both David and Joseph’s resolve was tested by a man with
whom their life will be defined. For David, this man was Goliath. It was David who brought God
into this situation. Throughout David’s youth, and for the rest of his life, God would be there to
protect him. In spite of trouble, he put his trust in God. With God on his side, he proceeded forth
with purity of heart to vanquish evil. It was not as an armored soldier that he conquered Goliath,
but rather through trust in God.

In the same way, Joseph conquered Herod. He knew that like David, he was facing his own Goliath,
and without trust in God, he did not stand a chance. With great trust, he allowed God to defend him
and his family. From Bethlehem to Egypt to the hidden years in Nazareth, Joseph relied on God for
the protection of his family.

In a very interesting way, the life of David parallels the history of Israel, whom God raised from
nothingness and chose as his special instrument. Israel, like David, sometimes missed the mark
and put other things ahead of God. While King David is the ideal man in the social consciousness
of Israel and is considered their best king, he is not referred to as the just man. This honor is
reserved to his descendent, Joseph of Nazareth, the son of King David who played the final essential
role in the preparation for the Messiah.

20 Reflections on st. joseph