Joseph and True Righteouness

I love Saint Joseph. I have always had a devotion to this foster father of Jesus – a carpenter who quietly supported his family and devoutly followed the Lord. As a priest, I feel a new appreciation for him, and I identify more with St. Joseph.  He is a man who has no child of his own, however, he is entrusted with the incredible Gift: the Son of God who is to be given to and for others. His role as a father is one of caretaker of the sublime miracle of the Incarnation, along with his wife, Mary.

He would have had a responsibility for teaching Jesus what a man looks like – the all-important role of a father. Like many boys in His day, Jesus would have eventually tagged along with Joseph as he plied his trade in Nazareth and the surrounding villages and towns. In all that time with St. Joseph, Jesus would have learned what a father looks like – how a father is supposed to behave. In that intimately human relationship, Jesus would have formed His idea of a father – an image that factored greatly into His message about God and His love for us.

Joseph, we are told, is a “righteous man.” This has a deep meaning in our Scriptures. The concept of “righteousness” is not simply an implication that Joseph was a “good guy.” Rather, righteousness is synonymous with justice. Therefore, Joseph could be said to be a “just man.” The concept of justice for the Jew and later for us Christians is that a person is in proper relationship with God and then with others. It means that a person abides in God’s will/law, and that affects their relationship with everything else.

The assumption for a righteous man in Joseph’s situation would be that he would be within his rights (some would even say duty) to leave Mary for her apparent infidelity – and have her publicly scorned or even executed. That would be technical righteousness according to Israel’s law. However, Joseph does not do this. Instead, he decides to “divorce her quietly,” so as not to expose her to shame. This shows us another facet to Joseph’s spiritual character. He is compassionate.

It is in these two things – his righteousness and his compassion – that Joseph’s goodness consists. He is not simply law-abiding; he is merciful. And from these two things the Christian character will develop. Jesus understood the Law. In fact, He is the one who gave it, as we proclaim in our Advent chant: “O come, o come, great Lord of might, who to your tribes on Sinai’s height, in ancient times did give the Law in cloud and majesty and awe.”

If Joseph’s righteousness simply consisted of his following the Law, then Mary would have been publicly scorned and probably killed. It was Joseph’s right and the letter of the Law of Moses, according to Leviticus, chapter 20, verse 10. Yet even before he learns what is going on with Mary, Joseph is not willing to follow the Law that way. He loves Mary – even if it appeared that she had been unfaithful – and he did not want to see her come to harm.

That is the person to who Jesus is entrusted as a child. Joseph’s righteousness, tempered by his compassion, is what made the Holy Family possible. It is what allowed him to hear the words of the angel in his dream, announcing to him the plan that God was unfolding. It is what allowed him – and therefore us – to encounter the Word made flesh.

That’s not always the case with us, is it? Many times, we are quick to quote the law and to see what the consequences will be for those we see breaking it. In the face of scandal, our immediate response is usually not mercy but gossip; it is not compassion but condemnation. Is that what the Lord wants? Is that what Christian righteousness means?

Jesus showed a different way. For Him, the defining characteristic of God was not his wrath or ability to punish; rather, it was a Father’s compassion – compassion that reveals a deep love for us, even as we are sinners. We are the prodigal sons whom God waits to see return; we are the lost sheep after whom God goes in search; we are the lepers whom God touches to make us whole again.

Jesus teaches that God is not willing to watch us be destroyed, even if we might deserve it; and Jesus could teach that because Joseph, his foster father, gave Him the example. This is another, subtle lesson of the Incarnation. The Man, Jesus, needed to learn as He grew. Mary was a part of that, yes, but so was Joseph. And today we see what kind of man Joseph was.

Jesus, whom we still await with joyful hope, brings us back to right relationship with God. That is righteousness. And He teaches us that mercy, compassion, love of neighbor are the signs that we have learned what a relationship with God truly means.