The Joseph factor

Someone made the interesting observation that while there are many pictures of Jesus and Mary, there are very few pictures of St. Joseph.  Why? Because he is always the one taking the pictures!

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Today is the Feast of the Holy Family. In today’s Gospel (Mt. 2, 13-15, 19-23), we hear of the difficult circumstances that Joseph had to face after Jesus was born. The survival and safety of Jesus and Mary depended on the decisions and actions of Joseph. Here was a man who listened to God (the Dreamer!), but more so a man who obeyed God (the Doer!). And he did it all in quiet, in humility, and in total trust. Joseph, the obedient, the quiet, the hidden one.

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Joseph must have been a man of prayer, a man who consulted and listened to God. There were many things he could not understand. He must have had big doubts about Mary and the child, but he trusted and obeyed God’s plans. Therein lies the greatness of Joseph—the willingness to obey and execute God’s plan in a most humble and most loving way. That is the Joseph factor—the ability to step back and the willingness to obey for God’s greater glory.

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St. Joseph was a man of few words. In fact there are no records of anything he said in the four Gospels. There are people who don’t say much, or don’t need to say much.  Yes, often, they say little who love much.

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In contrast, Herod had all the wealth and power. He had people at his beck and call.  Well, he used them all for his own glory and pleasure, and that was his greatest downfall.  He did not acknowledge or listen to and obey someone greater than himself. Who remembers Herod now? Who talks about him at all?

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The other day, I was happy to meet in our grounds at the Christ the King Seminary two busloads of parishioners from Jesus the Nazarene Parish in Dulag, Binmaley, Pangasinan. They left Pangasinan at 3 a.m. to visit the grave of Fr. Augustine Herbers, SVD, who served in Dulag from 1979 to 1996. They had many heartwarming stories about Father Herbers, whom they fondly remembered as a kind, generous, and dedicated missionary. The Joseph factor in Father Herbers lives on in their hearts.

People will long remember our kindness and goodness more than our brilliance, worldly fame, and achievements. It was such an inspiring moment. Father Herbers’ parishioners still love him and remember him long after his passing.

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There is a Herod factor and a Joseph factor in each one of us, and there are Herods and Josephs among us. Consider this:  Herod the destroyer, Joseph the protector; Herod the feargiver, Joseph the caregiver; Herod the operator, Joseph the cooperator; Herod the powerful, Joseph the humble;  Herod the commander, Joseph the dreamer. The list goes on. May the Joseph in each one of us prevail and grow.

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The dangers, the deprivations, the injustice, and the violence that the Holy Family experienced are still very much with us today. As we face the New Year, let us fervently pray and work for peace. As in Jesus’ time, so also in our time, it is the children and the innocent ones who suffer and are affected by the selfishness and greed of those who came before them.

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The Inquirer carried a news item yesterday about some 529 soldiers from South Korea who arrived last Friday to help our people affected by Supertyphoon “Yolanda” in Tanauan, Leyte, in gratitude for the help extended by the Philippines to them in the Korean War in the 1950s. If only all nations would just stop war, and just reach out to one another in aid and in friendship. Yes, we are one big family!

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As we did at Christmas, let us also welcome the New Year in more simple and subdued ways, and continue to help the less fortunate among us. Fireworks, which cost a lot, should be toned down, if not altogether scrapped, and instead let us focus on good works at the beginning and all throughout the New Year!

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Maura Mara Mananzan died last Dec. 26, the birthday of her late husband, Judge

Salvador Mananzan. Both of them were very active leaders of the Adoracion Nocturna and Legion of Mary in Pangasinan. From their Eucharistic and Marian home came forth Fr. Rex Mananzan, SJ, Fr. Titus Mananzan, SVD, and Sr. Henedina, RGS. Let us neither belittle nor doubt the value of prayer in our families.

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Someone had this Christmas prayer:  “Lord, make all months December, and every day in it the 25th. Then will this season of love become a permanent event, and all men and women of good will become Christmas people all throughout the year.  Amen.”  Please remember that Christmas is not a day, but a spirit that we carry with us.

May 2014 be a better year for all of us, in all aspects, in Jesus’ name. Amen! Happy New Year!

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A moment with the Lord:

Lord, give us peace in our hearts, in our families, in our country, in our world. Amen.