Why don’t we celebrate Joseph?

I think that in this season, while we rightfully celebrate the birth of Christ, we need to take a moment to think about Joseph.

Here is a question: How would you feel if your wife and her child were celebrated, given gifts by wise and wealthy men and you, the one who did the best he could to protect them, got them to where they should be were forgotten?

This, to me, is his story and the story of many men.

Bible Scholars, please forgive any inaccuracies.

Allow me to take his point of view.

• He is instructed by an Angel to wed Mary, whom he finds out is pregnant at the time of the marriage (meaning he could not be the father).
• He wants to divorce her, then decides to stay married to her because had he divorced her she would have certainly faced death by stoning.
• He also agrees to have no “relations” with her (his WIFE) until after the child is born.

Jesus was born in Bethlehem because of an order by Emperor Augustus that they had to return to their ancestral village. That was a 90 mile trip from Galilee (?) that took seven days (at the time) and when he got to Bethlehem, he was told by the innkeeper that there was no room there for him, Mary and the baby and he had money to pay the innkeeper.

So Joseph had taken care of business, but even after doing that he STILL has to struggle to find a place for Mary to give birth to her child, thus the manger birth. While this is glorified in the bible, that did not appear (to me) to be Josephs intent for Mary and her child. He wanted better for them and the failure to do so must have been extremely painful.

Regardless, this was an extreme act of faith by a man who clearly walked in that. Because of the actions of Joseph, Mary and her Child were taken care of and are safe and we all give praise for this thousands of years later.

Joseph was an amazing man of God that I am so confused that no one talks about much, there are no songs attributed to him and the bible does not even deal much with his life and how he died.

We have man whom was instrumental in the making sure that the defining moment of Christianity actually happened and yet Christians do not much talk of him at all!

I understand that he was canonized a Saint, but he deserves much more IMO.

This tells me that as a man, I need to be committed to the safety and well-being of the women and children of the community in which I reside. God will know what I do, even if man doesn’t mention my name anymore or speaks of me unkindly or with faint praise.

And I need to prepare myself to be ok with that.

So….please take a moment to celebrate and thank the Josephs in YOUR life. It would mean the world to them if you did.

I am committed to creating MORE Josephs out in my community and to glorify them while they are still above ground.

I think Bishop Jakes give a powerful feel for what this is like. I leave the words with him and am thankful for any chance I am provided with to be of service!