I chose Joseph (after St Joseph) for my confirmation name and again Joseph as middle names for both my sons. As for my daughter her middle name is Marie. (after our Blessed Mother Mary) This I had hoped would serve as reminders for us to emulate the Holy Family so as to grow in Holiness in the presence of the Lord our God.
Personally I had not dwelled enough on the life of Saint Joseph to merit the honour of following in his gentle footsteps. And so it is my desire now to dwell a little more starting today, so that my patron saint can guide me on my pilgrim journey ‘home’.
Not a single word in scripture is quoted, as having been spoken by him and yet he speaks volumes of his love for the Lord our God put into action. A righteous man after the heart of God, for he certainly would have dwelled in His presence daily in prayer and in His Word. For whether awake or asleep he remained faithful to God, that is why he could trust that his dreams would not betray him. For he knew the Lord-our-integrity his ‘Saving Justice’ on a deep personal level even before He came to be and so was made righteous through His grace. A simple carpenter by trade who cared, provided for and protected his family. A loving, patient, devoted husband and father.
Guide me St Joseph that I may be made worthy of the promises of Emmanuel. Amen
First reading – Jeremiah 23:5-8
I will raise a virtuous Branch for David
See, the days are coming – it is the Lord who speaks –
when I will raise a virtuous Branch for David,
who will reign as true king and be wise,
practising honesty and integrity in the land.
In his days Judah will be saved
and Israel dwell in confidence.
And this is the name he will be called:
The-Lord-our-integrity.
So, then, the days are coming – it is the Lord who speaks – when people will no longer say, “As the Lord lives who brought the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt!” but, “As the Lord lives who led back and brought home the descendants of the House of Israel out of the land of the North and from all the countries to which he had dispersed them, to live on their own soil.”
Gospel – Matthew 1:18-24
How Jesus Christ came to be born
This is how Jesus Christ came to be born. His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph; but before they came to live together she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph; being a man of honour and wanting to spare her publicity, decided to divorce her informally. He had made up his mind to do this when the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you must name him Jesus, because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins.’ Now all this took place to fulfil the words spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son
and they will call him Emmanuel,
a name which means ‘God-is-with-us.’ When Joseph woke up he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do: he took his wife to his home.
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