The Silence of the Carpenter

If there is a word to best describe Saint Joseph, it is “silence”. The Holy Scripture do not record any words the
righteous man might have spoken, his life is not marked by any outstanding speech or preaching. He is a model of
and embodiment of the famous line “Action speaks louder than words”

His eloquent silence, nonetheless, gives us a glimpse of his Character. He is a man who followed God’s will and
design, as manifested in his great humility, obedience and uprightness. The values and character of Saint Joseph,
however, must not be viewed as a separate entity with the role he played in the life of Mary and Jesus. He is the
Husband of the Virgin Mary and the foster father, protector of the child Jesus. The role he played in their life made
him extraordinary from any other. It is uncontestable the he lived an exemplary life; one that is possessed by a
deep faith in God’s will, and trust in his divine providence.

In the Gospels, there were many descriptions we can get as to who Joseph is. The Gospels tell of his connection to
particular figures, he is Son of Adam, Son of David, Son of Abraham, the just man betrothed to Mary, foster father
and protector of Jesus, the carpenter from Nazareth, and the man of Dreams. These descriptions about Joseph are
all important in understanding the lineage or the genealogy of Jesus yet they are, in themselves, also crucial in
understanding the life of Joseph. In the script of the salvific story written by the Almighty, Joseph was given a
major role to play, not the main of course, not even the wordy part, yet so important that it can change the whole
story if not acted out as was planned and willed by The Author.

Sometimes, in my wild, even crazy contemplations, I wonder and imagine what possibly could have happened if
Joseph was unrighteous, if he exposed to the public Mary’s virginal conception. I always believe that God’s design
is beautiful and his ways are effective, but I cannot help myself to think that, with the freewill he endowed human
beings, the possibility of man following his own desire is always there. What if Joseph handed Mary to the
Authorities after finding out that she was pregnant? What if the Authorities punished Mary? What could have
possibly happened to The Story?

Joseph, like any man, have encountered difficulties and hardships but relying on the grace of God and following his
will, he was able to act out beautifully the role given to him. He never questioned what God told him and carried
out God’s promptings without delay. He always responds to these promptings in an immediate manner and would
always carry out the task he was ask to do in the manner God wanted them to be done. He took Mary as his wife
after the angel assured him that Mary was pregnant through the Holy Spirit. When the child Jesus was born, after
the visit of he magi, having been warned by the angel, he waisted no time, immediately did what he was told, he
brought his family to Egypt to escape Herod’s bloody order. Then, after the death of Herod, he was again
instructed by the angel to return to Israel, there they settled in Nazareth. Joseph’s response to God is always
immediate, unhesitant and ungrudgingly.