On the
Mystery of Fatherhood
H.H. JOHN PAUL II
Solemnity of St. Jospeh
On the Jubilee of Craftsmen
March 19, 2000
1. God, “who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us
all, will he not also give us all things with him?” (Rom 8:32).
It is the Apostle Paul in his Letter to the Romans who asks this
question, in which the central theme of today's liturgy stands
out clearly: the mystery of God's fatherhood. And in the Gospel
passage it is the eternal Father who presents himself to us when
he admonishes us from the luminous cloud that envelops Jesus and
the Apostles on the mount of the Transfiguration: “This is my
beloved Son; listen to him” (Mk 9:7). Peter, James and John
realize — later they will understand better — that God has
spoken to them, revealing himself and the mystery of his inmost
reality.
After the Resurrection, they and the other Apostles will
proclaim the astonishing message to the world: in his incarnate
Son, God has reached out to every man as the merciful Father. In
him every human being is held in the Father's strong yet tender
embrace.
2. This message is also addressed to you, dear craftsmen, who
have come to Rome from every part of the world to celebrate your
Jubilee. In reflecting anew on this consoling reality — God is
Father — you are supported by your heavenly patron, St Joseph, a
craftsman like you, a just man and the faithful guardian of the
Holy Family.
You look to him as an example of diligence and honesty in daily
work. In him, especially, you seek a model of unreserved faith
and constant obedience to the heavenly Father's will. Next to St
Joseph you find the Son of God himself who, under his guidance,
learns the carpenter's trade and plies it until he is 30 years
old, the very epitome of “the Gospel of work”.
In his earthly life Joseph thus becomes a humble and diligent
reflection of that divine fatherhood which would be revealed to
the Apostles on the mount of the Transfiguration. The liturgy
for this Second Sunday of Lent invites us to reflect on this
mystery with greater attention. It is the heavenly Father
himself who in a sense takes us by the hand to guide us in this
meditation.
Christ is the beloved Son of the Father! It is especially this
word “beloved” which, by answering our questions, lifts the veil
to a certain extent from the mystery of the divine fatherhood.
Indeed, it enables us to understand the Father's infinite love
for the Son and, at the same time, reveals to us his “passion”
for man, for whose salvation he does not hesitate to give this
beloved Son. Henceforth, every human being knows that in Jesus,
the incarnate Word, he is the object of the heavenly Father's
boundless love.
3. The first reading from the Book of Genesis makes a further
contribution to our knowledge of this mystery. God asks Abraham
for the sacrifice of his son: “Take your son, your only son
Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer
him there as a burnt offering upon one of the mountains of which
I shall tell you” (Gn 22:2). With a broken heart, Abraham
prepares to carry out God's command. But as he raises the knife
to sacrifice his son, the Lord stops him and through an angel
tells him: “Do not lay your hand on the lad or do anything to
him; for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not
withheld your son, your only son, from me” (Gn 22:12).
Here, through the events of a human fatherhood put to a dramatic
test, another fatherhood is revealed, the one based on faith. It
is precisely through the extraordinary witness of faith offered
on that occasion that Abraham receives the promise of numerous
descendants: “By your descendants shall all the nations of the
earth bless themselves, because you have obeyed my voice” (Gn
22:18). Through his unconditional trust in God's Word, Abraham
becomes the father of all believers.
4. God the Father “did not spare his own Son, but gave him up
for us all (Rom 8:32). By his willingness to sacrifice Isaac,
Abraham foreshadows Christ's sacrifice for the world's
salvation. The actual carrying out of the sacrifice, which
Abraham is spared, will take place with Jesus Christ. It is he
who tells the Apostles this: coming down from the mount of the
Transfiguration, he orders them to tell no one what they had
seen until the Son of Man has risen from the dead. The
Evangelist adds: “They kept the matter to themselves,
questioning what the rising from the dead meant” (Mk 9:10).
The disciples realized that Jesus is the Messiah and that
salvation is achieved in him. But they do not understand why he
speaks of suffering and death: they do not accept that the love
of God can be hidden behind the Cross. Yet, where men see only
death, God will manifest his glory by raising his Son; where men
speak words of condemnation, God will work his mystery of
salvation and love for the human race.
This is the lesson that every Christian generation must learn
anew. Every generation: even our own! This is the reason for our
journey of conversion in this special time of grace. The Jubilee
enlightens all human life and experience. Even the efforts and
the burden of daily work receive a new light of hope from faith
in the dead and risen Christ. They are revealed as significant
elements of the saving plan that the heavenly Father is
accomplishing through the Cross of his Son.
5. Strong in this knowledge, dear craftsmen, you can give new
strength and practical expression to those values which have
always marked your activity: quality, a spirit of initiative,
the promotion of artistic skills, freedom and cooperation, the
correct relationship between technology and the environment,
devotion to family, good neighbourly relations. In the past, the
culture of crafts has created great occasions for bringing
people together and has bequeathed wonderful syntheses of
culture and faith to later generations.
The mystery of the life at Nazareth, of which St Joseph, patron
of the Church and your protector, was the faithful guardian and
wise witness, is the icon of this wonderful synthesis of faith
life and human work, of personal growth and commitment to
solidarity.
Dear craftsmen, you have come here today to celebrate your
Jubilee. May the light of the Gospel shine ever more brightly on
your daily work. The Jubilee gives you an opportunity to meet
Jesus, Joseph and Mary, to enter their home and the humble
workshop of Nazareth. At the extraordinary school of the Holy
Family we learn the essential realities of life and acquire a
deeper understanding of what it means to follow Christ. Nazareth
teaches us to overcome the apparent tension between the active
and contemplative life; it invites us to grow in love of the
divine truth that radiates from Christ's humanity and to
exercise courageously the demanding service of safeguarding
Christ who is present in every human person (cf. Redemptoris
custos, n. 27).
6. Let us make a spiritual pilgrimage, then, across the
threshold of the house of Nazareth, the poor dwelling which I
will have the joy of visiting, God willing, next week during my
Jubilee pilgrimage in the Holy Land. Let us pause to contemplate
Mary, who witnessed the fulfilment of the Lord's promise “to
Abraham and to his posterity for ever” (Lk 1:54-55).
With Joseph, her chaste husband, may she help you, dear
craftsmen, to listen constantly to God, combining prayer and
work. May they support you in your jubilee resolutions of
renewed Christian fidelity and ensure that God's creative and
provident work is in some way continued through your hands.
May the Holy Family, a place of understanding and love, help you
to make acts of solidarity, peace and forgiveness. In this way
you will be heralds of the infinite love of God the Father, who
is rich in mercy and goodness to all. Amen.
© Copyright 2000 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
