Lending a Hand

I have a single figure from a Nativity scene. He usually stands with his arms crossed comfortably in front of him, bending just slightly with a warm smile on his face. If he was in place with the rest of the set he should be in, he would be looking down at the baby Jesus in his manger bed. It’s Joseph, Jesus’ adoptive father, and normally he is standing on my bookcase. In the past, I looked to find the set and I discovered that it was no longer being made. So, I keep him as my “single figure Creche scene.” I think he is fine just as he is because he reminds me of how Joseph gets a bit forgotten in the story of Jesus. There are not even a handful of stories that tell us about his part in the whole experience, but the reality is that his part went on for years, most likely. He had a hand in bringing up this child… boy… young man. Like most young men, Jesus became known as following in the trade of the father of the household. You didn’t get to that place without participating in daily activities. What did they talk about? What did Joseph teach Jesus to practice so that he could become proficient? What kind of natural talent was revealed in Jesus’ work that Joseph admired and encouraged? What did Jesus learn from Joseph’s patient intentionality, insight, and strength? How did Joseph talk about God? An interesting comparison can be found in putting the book of James alongside Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. They speak in a similar way about how to live and what’s important. Did both of these boys, Jesus and James, hear these kinds of lessons coming from Joseph in the household? One thing we know for sure. There was a remarkable man who once stood beside a remarkable boy who shouldered a remarkable level of responsibility in their own way for the sake of the world. We have much for which to be thankful in Joseph and how he lived out his call from God. Blessings, Geoff