Sunday's Gospel Reflection

by Father Joel Borreo, OCD

"…Joseph…do not be afraid…"

Advent 4a; Mt. 1:1825

Unwavering faith in a helpless situation

Our gospel reading is Matthew's version of the annunciation in which the message is directed at Joseph, not Mary. The discovery that Mary is with child before the couple came to live together puts Joseph, a just man, in a dilemma and a compromising situation in terms of his role in the life of Mary and the child she is carrying.

In light of today's gospel, I would like to share with you the story of a young family who narrowly escaped the raging flood that ravaged the town of Infanta, Quezon the fateful night of November 29, 2004. That night, the young couple went to bed early. At about 8:30 P.M., the wife was awakened by the cries of their one-year-old daughter. As she prepared the baby's milk, she heard their dog crying from below the house, as if in distress. When she checked on the dog, she was struck by fear when she saw the rising floodwater under the house. She immediately woke her husband up. Knowing that their little house is at a low level and not quite sturdy, they immediately decided to evacuate to the nearest sturdy house, which belonged to a cousin. The young mother picked up the baby and some baby food. The young father took their five-year-old son and sat the boy on his shoulders. As they waded through the water, the current grew stronger and the flood level kept rising. But they kept on, determined to reach safer ground. Eventually, they found refuge in their cousin's house. Through all that, the husband could not help but worry about his tricycle, which is their main source of livelihood, as well as their lactating sow and its four new piglets. They had spent a good part of his earning on that sow, hoping to make some profit soon. And so, after ensuring his family's safety, he was determined to go back and save the sow and its piglets. But his wife's more sensible protestations prevailed. She firmly reminded him that the most important thing at that moment is that they are all alive and together. She was adamant that this was not the time to worry about their livelihood. There were others who sought refuge in that house and none of them slept that night. They all felt helpless and the best they could do was keep watch and pray. Their helplessness, their fears and their hearts' pleas are best captured in the prayer of the five year-old boy who saw the fear in his parents' eyes: "Diyos ko, sa inyo po kami umaasa. Tama na po! Tama na po!. Maawa po kayo sa amin!" (My God, we trust in You. Stop the flood! Stop the flood! Have mercy on us!)

By dawn, the flood finally subsided. The young couple, fatigued from lack of sleep, fear and anxiety, went back to their small house to check the damage. What they saw made their hearts sink! Their house and everything around it were covered with debris and mud. The tricycle and their few possessions were buried in mud. The sow and its piglets were nowhere to be found. In spite of it all, they were grateful to God that their small house was still standing. More importantly, they were thankful that they all survived. Later, they would find out that many of their townmates were not as fortunate. Many were killed and many houses were damaged and destroyed.

The extraordinary faith of Joseph

The story of the young couple's escape to safety helps us appreciate the passage about Joseph in our gospel reading today. Joseph and Mary struggled in the face of difficult decisions and crises from the annunciation of Jesus' birth, and indeed through his growing years. Similarly, the young couple in our story was forced to make critical decisions when faced by a life-threatening situation.

Our gospel reading today is centered on St. Joseph. It gives us a glimpse of how he decided and made the most important choice of his life. Mary had been betrothed to him but was soon found to be with child even if they had not been together. In those days, betrothal had all the legal effects of a real marriage, minus cohabitation. And so, the discovery of Mary's pregnancy put him in a very compromising situation, socially. Furthermore, he found himself in a dilemma: should he continue with his betrothal to become Mary's husband, or should he get out now? After much reflection and prayer, and being the just man that he is, he decided to release Mary from the betrothal quietly. There are bible scholars who say that the reason for this move on the part of Joseph was that he suspected Mary of adultery. But other scholars take note of Joseph's righteousness and say it was because of religious awe. In such an interpretation, Joseph had awareness in faith of the virginal conception prior to the angel's annunciation in a dream of the birth of Jesus. In the presence of such divine activity, he could not but experience a typical Jewish awe or fear of the Lord. He then felt that there was nothing he could do in the presence of such a divine activity, but to be respectful and to just let God do as He pleases. Resolving his dilemma in faith, he thought that the best and most respectful option was to quietly release Mary from the betrothal. Nevertheless, God had other plans. And God revealed this to Joseph through an angel in a dream. In the same faith, Joseph changed his own plan, and agreed to take Mary as his wife, to be a father to Jesus, and to give his name to Jesus.

What stands out in Joseph's decision-making process is his strong faith in God. Faith helped him to come to the decision to release Mary from the betrothal quietly. The same faith allowed him to reconsider his earlier decision and to assume his role as husband of Mary and foster father of Jesus.

Challenges

The striking similarity in our gospel reading today and the young couple's story is that of steadfast faith. We see the prevalence of faith in the life of Joseph. As a righteous man, he approaches life with respect and in religious fear of the Lord. He sees things and makes choices and decisions in the light of faith. In our young couple's story, their escape to safety was easy enough in that the only other option of staying in their house entailed the risk of death. Other than this, the couple was obviously scared and helpless. But in seeking refuge in their faith, they never lost hope. They remained steadfast and in spite of their loss, they found gratefulness in their hearts.

The challenge of today's passage about Joseph and the young couple's story is one of faith that we might learn from the kind of unwavering faith they so clearly exhibited. We are being challenged to let our faith guide and rule our choices and decisions in life. It is the challenge of putting faith at the center of our lives, and like Joseph, not needing any tangible proof from God. It is a call to approach life as Joseph did, with such religious awe and respect and trust trusting that our faith in God will pull us through even the toughest of times. And there is no better time to remind ourselves of this than the season of advent. For this is what the coming of Jesus is about, God making His presence known to us…Jesus…Immanuel…"God-is-with-us!"