Carpenter, foster father of Jesus focus of Advent reflection
Retreat participants read prayers to St. Joseph as part of an Advent reflection Dec. 3 at the Mary Reparatrix Retreat House in Riverview.Dan Meloy | The Michigan Catholic
RIVERVIEW — “Joseph doesn’t speak; he just listens and does what God asks of him.”
On Dec. 3, Mary Reparatrix Retreat House director Denise LaPorte and 24 participants took the time to reflect on St. Joseph’s role in the Advent story, and how he can serve as a model to Catholics this Advent season.
The Riverview retreat house has hosted Advent retreats for seven years. LaPorte felt St. Joseph would be a good topic for this year because of his role in the Christmas story.
“When the angel came to Joseph, Joseph agreed with the angel,” LaPorte said. “Joseph doesn’t speak, he acts. Joseph gives God’s plan full obedience, he believes in God’s plan. When Joseph wakes up, it’s not just from a physical sleep, but it becomes a spiritual awakening.”
LaPorte and the other participants used the time to reflect on the Advent story and other tasks God calls His people to take up and how He reaches us.
“When we think of Advent, it is meant to be a time of waiting, reflection and anticipation,” LaPorte said. “We have to choose these moments to let the spirit of Advent come to us. There is a demand for trust of who we are and how the world is. As we begin Advent, we need to look at what is going on in our life.”
The group noted how God spoke to Joseph four times in the Gospel of St. Matthew, and each and every time, God called Joseph into action as a form of prayer.
“Whatever we say or pray to God, it doesn’t matter if we don’t act,” LaPorte said. “We must allow for God’s response. There are signs all around us; we just need to look.”
After Joseph agreed to take Mary into his home and become a parent for Jesus, he had another dream in which he was warned of King Herod’s plan and to flee to Egypt.
“Very early in the Holy Family’s existence, they were refugees,” LaPorte said. “That’s especially poignant today. That’s where we get the works of mercy of welcoming the stranger from. Then Joseph had another dream to return from exile, but was warned not to return to Bethlehem but go to Galilee. Sometimes, our return from our own exiles isn’t what we originally planned.”
The retreat group discussed and reflected on St. Joseph’s faith in God’s plan, even though it went against custom.
“Joseph was betrothed to Mary, which was the first part of a marriage agreement,” LaPorte said. “They were married, but they didn’t live together until Joseph was able to support a wife. When Joseph discovered Mary was pregnant, he had the ‘dilemma of the righteous man’ where Joseph decided not to expose Mary to shame.”
LaPorte said this was intended to be a sign of mercy on Joseph’s part, until an angel appeared to Joseph to reveal God’s plan.
“Tradition has it Joseph was a carpenter; carpentry is the way we pull together the pieces in our lives to build something new,” LaPorte said. “He builds a respect of love in a world of law. Joseph is faithful, but is open to mystery, so he has a very mature sense of faith that goes beyond his own reasoning or religious custom.”
The retreat members likened to the Advent story to the difficulties many people face today, particularly overcoming struggles and being open to what God has planned.
“A key step in preparing for Advent is to reflect on our lives, our struggles and what we thought will be different,” LaPorte said. “Every Advent is different. We’re always in a different part of our lives every year, so we think about what could have been different and what we need to do to change.”
