Mary and Joseph talk to each other about their common secret

After the angel's liberating message to Joseph, the latter must have run to knock on Mary's door, his heart pounding; in the intense and silent exchange of their looks, Mary immediately understood that Joseph finally knew her secret! Joseph was able to tell Mary his suffering and his joy; he probably also asked her to forgive him for having doubted her even for a moment.

Mary was able to confide in Joseph the painful struggle she had been going through during all that time when she saw him suffering and could not say anything to him, when she herself had been praying continually to get through this ordeal, when she tried to hide her pregnancy, which was becoming more obvious every day, from her entourage, as much as possible.

Mary and Joseph talked about the secret that united them, about soon being able to hold the Savior in their arms, this child who would be their son and would call them daddy and mommy... What emotion, what divine depth in this exchange of Mary and Joseph in this blessed hour when the Lord sent to the spouses the superabundance of his consolation, of his peace and of his joy. Scriptures do not say anything about the songs of thanksgiving that rose for a long time from their united hearts, yet these certainly sprang forth with great power.

Joseph saw that his new mission would be to be the (putative) father of Mary's child in the eyes of the world. (Do we think that it was an easy thing?) And he did it by quickly organizing the festive meal that preceded the moment when, after declaring to Mary in front of their assembled friends, "you are my wife according to the law of Moses", he "took Mary into his home," the second stage of the wedding celebration according to Jewish tradition.

How far along in the pregnancy was Mary then? Around the 6th month? In any case, because of the unmet time lapse of 9-12 months between the two stages of the wedding, we can easily imagine the village gossip. Do we think that it was easy for Mary and Joseph to bear silently these calumnies touching the most intimate part of their total gift to the Lord? This may have contributed to the negative comment about Nazareth: "What good can come out of Nazareth?"

Jacques de la Bastide

Excerpt from Regard sur les épreuves de Marie et de Joseph durant les 24 premiers mois où ils se sont connus (A look at the trials of Mary and Joseph during the first 24 months of their meeting each other)