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Pope Francis’ Cycle of Catechesis– Jubilee 2025. Jesus Christ our Hope. I.
Audience Hall – Wednesday, 29 January 2025
Cycle of Catechesis – Jubilee 2025. Jesus Christ our Hope.
The Infancy of Jesus.
3. «You are to name Him Jesus» (Mt 1:21).
The annunciation to Joseph
Dear brothers and sisters,
Today we will continue to contemplate Jesus our hope in the mystery of his origins, as narrated by the infancy Gospels.
While Luke lets us do this from the perspective of the mother, the Virgin Mary, Matthew takes the perspective of Joseph, the man who assumes the legal paternity of Jesus, grafting him onto the stump of Jesse and linking him to the promise made to David.
In fact, Jesus is the fulfilled hope of Israel. He is the descendent promised to David:
(2 Samual 7:12 – When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come forth from your body, and I will establish his kingdom;
1 Chronicles 17:11 – When your days are fulfilled to go to be with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom.), who makes his home “blessed forever”
2 Samual 7:29 – now therefore may it please thee to bless the house of thy servant, that it may continue forever before thee; for thou, O Lord God, hast spoken, and with thy blessing shall the house of thy servant be blessed forever.”); Jesus is the shoot that buds from the stump of Jesse
(Isaiah 11:1 – There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.),
the “righteous Branch, [who] shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land”
Jeremiah 23:5 – “Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.
Jeremiah 3:15 – And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.).
Joseph enters the scene in Matthew’s Gospel as Mary’s betrothed.
For the Hebrews, betrothal was a full legal commitment that prepared for what would happen about a year later, the celebration of marriage.
It was then that the woman passed from the custody of her father’s to the custody of her husband, moved into his home and making herself for the gift of motherhood.
It is precisely at that time that Joseph discovers Mary’s pregnancy, and his love is tested.
Faced with a similar situation, which would have led to the termination of the betrothal, the law suggested two possible solutions: either a public legal action, such as summoning the woman to court, or a private action giving her a letter of rejection.
Matthew defines Joseph as a “righteous” man (zaddiq), a man who lives according to the Law of the Lord, and who inspired by it in every occasion of his life.
Thus, following the Word of God, Joseph acts prudently: he does not allow himself to be overcome by instinctive feelings and fear of taking Mary with him, but prefers to be guided by divine wisdom.
He chooses to separate from Mary in silence, in private (Mt 1:19 – and her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to send her away quietly.). And this is the wisdom of Joseph that allows him not to make mistakes and to be open and obedient to the voice of the Lord.)
In this way, Joseph of Nazareth recalls another Joseph, son of Jacob, called the “lord of dreams” (Gen 37:19 – They said to one another, “Here comes this dreamer), loved by his father and hated by his brothers, whom the Lord raised up by placing him in Pharaoh’s court.
What does Joseph of Nazareth dream of? He dreamed of the miracle that God performs in Mary’s life, and also of the miracle that he performs in his own life: to assume a fatherhood capable of guarding, protecting and transmitting a material and spiritual inheritance.
The womb of his bride is pregnant with God’s promise, a promise that bears a name in which the certainty of salvation is given to all (Acts 4:12 – And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved”).
As he slept, Joseph heard these words: “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your house. For by the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you will call him Jesus because he will save his people from their sins” (Mt 1:20-21 – But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; 21 she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”).
Faced with this revelation, Joseph does not ask for further proof; he trusts.
Joseph trusts God, he accepts God’s dream for his life and that of his fiancée.
He thus enters into the grace of one who knows how to live the divine promise with faith, hope and love.
Josep, does not utter a word , in all this, but he believes, he hopes and he loves.
He does not express himself with “empty words”, but with concrete actions.
He belongs to the lineage of those who, according to the Apostle James, “he puts the Word into practice” (James 1:22 – be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.), translating the word into deeds, flesh, life.
Joseph trusts and obeys God: “His interior watchfulness for God … leads spontaneously to obedience” (Benedict XVI, The Infancy Narratives, Milan-Vatican City 2012, 57).
Sisters and brothers, let us, also, ask the Lord for the grace to listen more than to speak, for the grace to dream God’s dreams and to responsibly welcome the Christ who , lives and grows in our life, from the moment of our Baptism. Thank you!
