December 18/Third Saturday of Advent
Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” ~ Matthew 1:18-19
Exit Strategies
Joseph wanted out. His plan to marry a young village woman was derailed when she told him that she was pregnant. He planned to do the right thing by Mary, of course. He did not intend to cause a scene, or shame her publicly, but would just divorce her quietly and move on with his life as a righteous, God-fearing man. It seemed like a reasonable plan, and even a kind one. There was just one problem: God had a different plan in mind. He sent word to Joseph by a mysterious night messenger, outlining a role that surely confounded Joseph’s expectations for his life. A son, conceived through the Holy Spirit? A son, who will save his people from their sins? What a strange and hallucinatory dream this must have seemed. But Joseph, precisely because he was a righteous, God-fearing man, neither questioned nor resisted. Yielding to what the martyred German Jesuit priest Alfred Delp called “the divine unpredictability,” he did as the angel had instructed him. Like Joseph, we may find ourselves grappling with unexpected circumstances or unanticipated predicaments. We may feel that God is calling us to do something beyond our ability, or contrary to our own plans. Our tendency, like Joseph’s, may be to take matters into our own hands. We would do better to put our trust in the guiding hand of the Lord. Just as God intervened to redirect Joseph, so God operates in our lives, too, leading us down paths we do not always understand. When we sense that call, we need to listen carefully and deeply, put our fears aside, and trust, trust, trust.
Lord of Love, Lighten the darkness that surrounds me with the luminous power of your kindness and mercy, and help me to trust in you at all times. Amen.
For today’s readings, click here: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/121821.cfm
To hear the Choir of King’s College, Cambridge, sing “The Cherry Tree Carol,” click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOTM_ZLPfDM
