MARY
AND JOSEPH LIVED GIFT OF VIRGINITY
H.H. Pope John Paul II
General Audience
August 21, 1996
1. In presenting Mary as a "virgin" the Gospel of Luke
adds that she was "betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph,
of the house of David" (Lk 1:27). These two pieces of
information at first sight seem contradictory.
It should be noted that the Greek word used in this passage
does not indicate the situation of a woman who has
contracted marriage and therefore lives in the marital
state, but that of betrothal. Unlike what occurs in modern
cultures, however, the ancient Jewish custom of betrothal
provided for a contract and normally had definitive value:
it actually introduced the betrothed to the marital state,
even if the marriage was brought to full completion only
when the young man took the girl to his home.
At the time of the Annunciation Mary thus had the status of
one betrothed. We can wonder why she would accept betrothal,
since she had the intention of remaining a virgin forever.
Luke is aware of this difficulty, but merely notes the
situation without offering any explanation. The fact that
the Evangelist, while stressing Mary's intention of
virginity, also presents her as Joseph's spouse, is a sign
of the historical reliability of the two pieces of
information.
Joseph was called to co-operate in saving plan
2. It may be presumed that at the time of their
betrothal there was an understanding between Joseph and Mary
about the plan to live as a virgin. Moreover, the Holy
Spirit, who had inspired Mary to choose virginity in view of
the mystery of the Incarnation and who wanted the latter to
come about in a family setting suited to the Child's growth,
was quite able to instill in Joseph the ideal of virginity
as well.
The angel of the Lord appeared in a dream and said to him:
"Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife,
for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit"
(Mt 1:20). Thus he received confirmation that he was called
to live his marriage in a completely special way. Through
virginal communion with the woman chosen to give birth to
Jesus, God calls him to co-operate in carrying out his plan
of salvation.
The type of marriage to which the Holy Spirit led Mary and
Joseph can only be understood in the context of the saving
plan and of a lofty spirituality. The concrete realization
of the mystery of the Incarnation called for a virgin birth
which would highlight the divine sonship and, at the same
time, for a family that could provide for the normal
development of the Child's personality.
Precisely in view of their contribution to the mystery of
the Incarnation of the Word, Joseph and Mary received the
grace of living both the charism of virginity and the gift
of marriage. Mary and Joseph's communion of virginal love,
although a special case linked with the concrete realization
of the mystery of the Incarnation, was nevertheless a true
marriage (cf. Apostolic Exhortation Redemptoris custos, n.
7).
The difficulty of accepting the sublime mystery of their
spousal communion has led some, since the second century, to
think of Joseph as advanced in age and to consider him
Mary's guardian more than her husband. It is instead a case
of supposing that he was not an elderly man at the time, but
that his interior perfection, the fruit of grace, led him to
live his spousal relationship with Mary with virginal
affection.
Leo XIII entrusted entire Church to Joseph's protection
3. Joseph's co-operation in the mystery of the Incarnation
also includes exercising the role of Jesus' father. The
angel acknowledged this function of his when he appeared in
a dream and invited him to name the Child: "She will bear a
son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his
people from their sins" (Mt 1:21).
While excluding physical generation Joseph's fatherhood was
something real not apparent. Distinguishing between father
and the one who begets, an ancient monograph on Mary's
virginity the De Margarita (fourth century) states that "the
commitments assumed by the Virgin and by Joseph as husband
and wife made it possible for him to be called by this name
(father); a father, however, who did not beget". Joseph thus
carried out the role of Jesus' father, exercising an
authority to which the Redeemer was freely "obedient" (Lk
2:51), contributing to his upbringing and teaching him the
carpenter's trade.
Christians have always acknowledged Joseph as the one who
lived in intimate communion with Mary and Jesus, concluding
that also in death he enjoyed their affectionate, consoling
presence. From this constant Christian tradition in many
places a special devotion has grown to the Holy Family and,
in it, to St Joseph, Guardian of the Redeemer. As everyone
knows, Pope Leo XIII entrusted the entire Church to his
protection.
Taken from:
L'Osservatore Romano
Weekly Edition in English
28 August 1996
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