March 19th, by Amy Garcia: School Bookkeeper

March 19, 2022 - Solemnity of St. Joseph Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Amy Garcia: School Bookkeeper
2 Samuel 7:4-5a, 12-14a, 16/Rom 4:13, 16-18, 22/Mt 1:16, 18-21, 24a or Lk 2:41-51a

Today is the Solemnity of St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Today also is the ninth
anniversary of the installation of Pope Francis. We only have a little glimpse of the life of St.
Joseph from scriptures.  There are just few passages in the Gospel of Matthew and in the
Gospel of Luke that talk about this virtuous man St. Joseph. But from the readings of today, we
can learn a lot about St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, enough to help us
understand that he was a “just” man.
Today’s scriptures are emphasizing faithfulness and obedience. Faith comes as a free gift and
we, descendants of Abraham, have the opportunity to fulfill our obedience and respect to our
Lord so that we can live in the Kingdom of Heaven with our ancestors.
In the Gospel of Matthew, Joseph wanted to divorce Mary secretly so not to shame her because
she had already conceived Jesus in her womb. The angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to
Joseph 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.”
Joseph listened, obeyed the angel, and took Mary into his home. During this Lenten season,
we should try to hear the word of the Lord and be obedient just as Joseph was obedient. It is
also a time to reflect on how we may have strayed away from our faith and think about how
to get closer to God. We are all sinners, but through the mercy of Jesus, we will be forgiven
and have a chance to exercise our gift of faith. We should also try to follow in Joseph’s
footsteps when he protected Jesus as a father. We need to protect the presence of Jesus
Christ within our family, friends, and most importantly in our hearts.
In today’s society, many people worry about the opinions and thoughts of others resulting in
negative consequences from not being obedient. We all must be obedient and listen to the
Lord so that we may continue living out our faith while Jesus Christ rests in our hearts.
How many times have we not been obedient because we let the fear of being judged by
others determine our actions? God is the only one who has the right to judge someone.
Obey His commands and do what is right as to attain eternal life in the Kingdom of Heaven.