A child asked why St. Joseph is portrayed as sleeping — was it because he was too cool to care or just lazy?
The answer is neither. Joseph had the reputation of being a hard worker and a well-skilled carpenter. In fact, he was quite known in his village, but he maintained a quiet, brooding demeanor.
Yet much as he was very good at his gig, the man also knew how to rest. He knew that sleep replenished his energy, gave him the strength to pound on wood, and chisel for hours away. Joseph was a practical guy and believed in just doing things.
You could say he had quite a steady and chill life until Mary came along. Smitten by her virginal beauty, her gentleness and kindness, Joseph asked her to be his wife.
But even before the honeymoon happened, Mary became pregnant with Jesus, who was destined to be mankind’s savior and redeemer.
The development, however, stirred confusion in the usually cool Joseph. The village Marites started to wag their malicious tongues to question how can cool Joseph become a cuckold? Who did sweet-faced Mary have an affair with?
The news went viral and Joseph the usually cool dude was secretly plotting how to divorce Mary.
As was his practice, he slept on it, and that was when the Angel Gabriel appeared in his dreams to tell him about his wife’s Immaculate Conception. The angel relayed that his wife’s pregnancy was of great importance as she was carrying the Son of God.
He was then instructed to head towards Bethlehem where baby Jesus would be born.
Joseph woke up with a sense of clarity and, with deep faith in God, followed what he was told to do. Grabbing a donkey for his wife to ride on, the couple traveled, following the star of Bethlehem. The rest, as they say, became biblical history. The big reason for celebrating for Christmas.
In a healing world, we learn a lot about St. Joseph the Worker, who played a crucial role in Christianity but kept his quiet strength throughout. He didn’t falter in his trust in God and his dedication to Mary and Jesus. He pulled through no matter what struggles his family faced.
He didn’t need any validation but simply moved forward with life — with faith — as it should be.
Pope Francis is known to keep a mini reclining St. Joseph statue by his bedside as a reminder to surrender to the Lord for He will not forsake us.
Sometimes, life takes a certain turn that we may not be able to comprehend. Trust that there’s a reason why things happen. Sometimes, God removes things or people from our lives so we may have a clearer path.
Be like cool and steady St. Joseph who surrendered his burdens and anxieties to the Lord because he knew — deep in his heart — that things would fall into place in God’s will and time.
Have a joyful and peaceful Christmas.