Joseph's Obedience

Note:  Yesterday I could not publish what I had written, but it will appear as a "double feature" today.  I don't know how or why the slice on the Presidents popped up again.

NBB:  Not sure if you received this whole slice yesterday, I saw that part of it was posted, but the remainder, composed later, but failed in posting might not have appeared in your e-mail. I think I tried to post it too close to the deadline.   Will try again.

St. Matthew gives us a vivid picture of Joseph's dilemma when he learn that his fiancee (in today's terms) is with child.  The answer comes in a dream in which an angel of the Lord appears to him, tells him that the child is begotten of the Holy Spirit, that he thus should go through with the wedding, and give the child the name of Jesus. Joseph takes the message to heart and does just what the angel said.  He then obeys the decree to return to the village of his ancestors to register for the census despite Mary's late stage of pregnancy.  Later, when an angel warns him to take the child for safety to Egypt, he complies and leaves by night.  When it is time to return to Nazareth, an angel again informs Joseph and he obeys.  It appears that his faith grows into unwavering trust and helps him best serve the family as God wants him to.
Most of us do not have angels telling us what to do next, but we do have the same need to be attentive to the people and circumstances that appear in our day-to-day lives.  Many a time there is a call to listen to someone who devours the time we had planned for something else, or there's a desperate request from someone who just doesn't seem to understand that we don't have time to add one more thing to our day. On and on...we all know it well.  Joseph's life would have been much simpler if he put Mary away, as he planned to do. Yet, his acts of obedience gave him a place in the plan of salvation that has given him a place of honor as not only the guardian of the Holy Family, of the entire Church. as well as a model for us who want to do God's will as best we can.  May we go to Joseph for inspiration and the help we need to obey when God calls and do, as Mary advised, whatever he tells us.
Bro. Rene