WEBVTT 00:00:00.560 --> 00:00:06.559 Today the church celebrates the feast of Saint Joseph, and there's something striking about Saint Joseph. 00:00:06.799 --> 00:00:10.400 He never says a single word in all of Scripture, not one. 00:00:10.720 --> 00:00:15.679 And yet few men in history of salvation have spoken more loudly with their lives. 00:00:16.000 --> 00:00:20.000 Today's readings give us a key to understanding him. 00:00:20.559 --> 00:00:22.559 God makes a promise to David. 00:00:22.800 --> 00:00:28.320 I will raise up your heir, I will make his kingdom firm forever. 00:00:28.559 --> 00:00:33.600 It's a promise, it's the future, a plan that belongs to God. 00:00:34.560 --> 00:00:37.200 And then in the second reading we hear about Abraham. 00:00:37.679 --> 00:00:40.799 He believed hoping against hope. 00:00:41.119 --> 00:00:43.200 That line is everything. 00:00:43.520 --> 00:00:46.799 He believed when there was no reason to believe. 00:00:47.039 --> 00:00:50.719 He trusted when the situation made absolutely no sense. 00:00:51.039 --> 00:00:52.640 And then we come to Joseph. 00:00:53.520 --> 00:00:57.039 Joseph is the man who lives that same faith. 00:00:57.439 --> 00:01:02.079 He's told something that humanely speaking is impossible. 00:01:02.560 --> 00:01:07.200 Mary is with child, not by him, but by the Holy Spirit. 00:01:07.439 --> 00:01:11.840 There's no category for this, no explanation that makes any sense. 00:01:12.159 --> 00:01:14.719 The gospel tells us something very simple. 00:01:15.040 --> 00:01:17.280 Joseph was a righteous man. 00:01:17.680 --> 00:01:19.840 But don't misunderstand that word. 00:01:20.079 --> 00:01:22.239 Righteous does not mean safe. 00:01:22.480 --> 00:01:24.159 It does not mean comfortable. 00:01:24.400 --> 00:01:31.359 It means a man who lives in right relationship with God, a man who trusts God more than he trusts himself. 00:01:31.680 --> 00:01:36.239 Joseph had a plan, a quiet plan, a reasonable plan. 00:01:36.640 --> 00:01:38.000 He was going to step away. 00:01:38.319 --> 00:01:39.760 He wants to protect Mary. 00:01:39.840 --> 00:01:43.120 He wants to protect himself to avoid scandal. 00:01:43.359 --> 00:01:45.599 And then God interrupts that plan. 00:01:45.920 --> 00:01:51.359 He says, Do not be afraid, Joseph, to take Mary into your home. 00:01:51.680 --> 00:01:52.480 That's it. 00:01:52.879 --> 00:01:57.920 No long explanation, no detailed roadmap, just a command. 00:01:58.319 --> 00:02:00.400 And Joseph has a decision to make. 00:02:00.719 --> 00:02:06.560 Will I trust what I can see, or will I trust what God is asking of me? 00:02:07.519 --> 00:02:10.560 And here's a line that defines his entire life. 00:02:10.879 --> 00:02:15.840 When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him. 00:02:16.319 --> 00:02:20.400 No hesitation, no negotiation, no delay. 00:02:20.639 --> 00:02:22.159 He just obeys. 00:02:22.479 --> 00:02:25.599 And that's why Joseph is so powerful. 00:02:26.159 --> 00:02:29.520 Because he teaches us something we desperately need to hear. 00:02:29.759 --> 00:02:32.080 Faith is not about having all the answers. 00:02:32.240 --> 00:02:35.439 Faith is about trusting God when you don't. 00:02:36.080 --> 00:02:37.840 Joseph never sees the full picture. 00:02:37.919 --> 00:02:39.120 He doesn't understand everything. 00:02:39.199 --> 00:02:43.439 He doesn't get guarantees, but he does the right thing. 00:02:44.159 --> 00:02:50.960 And because of that, he becomes the guardian of the Redeemer, the protector of Mary, the man entrusted with the Son of God. 00:02:51.840 --> 00:02:54.879 Here's where this becomes very real for us. 00:02:55.280 --> 00:02:58.479 Because most people are waiting for clarity before they act. 00:02:58.719 --> 00:03:01.840 Oh, maybe if I understand everything, then I'll trust. 00:03:02.080 --> 00:03:07.199 Once I it all makes sense, then I'll move, I'll get motivated to do the right thing. 00:03:07.919 --> 00:03:09.759 But that's not how God works. 00:03:10.080 --> 00:03:13.919 God speaks, and then he invites us to trust. 00:03:15.520 --> 00:03:24.319 Some of us right now are in our life where some situations make absolutely no sense. 00:03:25.280 --> 00:03:32.560 Decision, a burden, a situation you didn't choose, and you're waiting for certainty. 00:03:33.680 --> 00:03:41.360 Joseph would say, you may not get it, but you still can trust because God is faithful. 00:03:41.759 --> 00:03:50.319 The same God who made a promise to David, the same God who fulfilled it through Abraham's faith, is the same God working in your life right now. 00:03:50.960 --> 00:03:55.120 And when you don't see it, even when you don't see it, St. 00:03:55.280 --> 00:03:58.159 Joseph teaches us a very simple but demanding path. 00:03:58.479 --> 00:03:59.120 Listen. 00:03:59.919 --> 00:04:00.560 Trust. 00:04:01.439 --> 00:04:02.000 Act. 00:04:02.159 --> 00:04:04.080 That's why prayer is so important. 00:04:04.319 --> 00:04:06.800 That's why prayer gives us such clarity. 00:04:08.159 --> 00:04:11.439 We do it without needing to control everything. 00:04:11.840 --> 00:04:14.560 So today, don't ask for more information. 00:04:14.800 --> 00:04:22.639 Ask for the grace to be like Joseph, a man of quiet strength, a man of decisive faith, a man who, when God speaks, moves. 00:04:22.800 --> 00:04:25.040 Because in the end, that's what holiness looks like. 00:04:25.199 --> 00:04:33.360 Not perfection, not having everything figured out, but a life that says, Lord, I don't understand everything, but I need you. 00:04:34.000 --> 00:04:34.959 I love you. 00:04:35.759 --> 00:04:38.879 I want to trust you enough to take the next step. 00:04:39.040 --> 00:04:40.079 Help me. 00:04:40.480 --> 00:04:43.120 Saint Joseph, pray for us.