Joseph and Mary: A couple united through trials

Saint Joseph was seeking to do God's will—thence his name of “just” in Mt 1:19. Here we find an essential element that united Mary and Joseph: both wanted to obey God in faith, and this opened up their heart and predisposed them to accept a mission that gave their lives a new direction. Perhaps this forced them to redefine their roles, but we can be sure that it strengthened their union. Being righteous before God unites people.

Years later, when the Child Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, Mary and Joseph did not fall for the easy temptation that trips so many couple, that of blaming the other for the problem. Recrimination brings no solution—instead, it creates new problems. Joseph and Mary searched for their son together and suffered together: "My son," Mary said to Jesus, "why have you done this to us? Behold, your father and I have been anxiously searching for you" (Lk 2:48). Both of them experienced an intense communion of feelings.

Finally, another reason for their deep union was the shared exercise of a mission. After seeking Jesus in the temple, they returned to Nazareth, and Jesus "was subject to them" (Lk 2:51). Until Jesus came of age, he lived under an authority that—according to the etymology of the word—helped him to grow. Only he who knows how to obey knows how to command. And as we have seen, Mary and Joseph knew how to obey.

Pablo Largo Dominguez

Excerpt from: María, microcosmos de relaciones Ephemerides Mariologicae, ISSN 0425-1466, Vol. 57, Nº. 1, 2007