Knowledge - The Conversion of Joseph

Every day we must have some kind of conversion. Conversion doesn’t necessary mean from a great sinner to someone who wants to love God, or someone who was lost like I was 25 years ago. I’m writing about daily conversion, the spiritual conversion that Joseph had. He was a devout Jew that did all the necessary things, as a Catholic you go to mass, confession, and adoration, but do you thirst to see and know the Face of God.

 Joseph wasn’t a highly educated man, but he was educated enough to comprehend the  angel that appeared to him in a dream. Joseph was masculine, not only in a worldly sense, but he was a man that was able to know, to learn, and uphold God’s word, it took only one dream and like Our Lady he never questioned God even during hardships. He was a man that took care of Our Lady.

 Jospeh was a man like many of us. He went the temple to offer sacrifices, he studied the books of the prophets, but did he see; do you see that Jesus came and comes down to this earth just for you?

Two years ago, before I received “my call within a call” I was a Lay Missionary of Charity, which is a third order of the Missionary of Chairty Contemplative brothers. Some people question what’s the purpose becoming a lay religious “I’m married, that’s not necessary” becoming lay religious are those who are not called are able to live in a community, its for those who like myself wanted a deeper sense of accountability  to the church when I signed private vows on something that didn’t belong to me but to the church it was a conversion for me that know like St. Paul said in Galatians 2:20 “I live no longer I, but for Christ that lives in me .

Joseph was a man outside the box. He was a man that had accustomed himself to withholding and protecting the same values Our Lady. He wasn’t stuck inside the box. The church through crazy men the has been able to sustain itself for over 2000 years, have you read the lives of the great saints. I particularly like the one that just didn’t fit in. St Bernadette washed her face with dirt, St Juan Diego an highly uneducated low class.It always seemed that great ones were sought as fool by the world and Joseph was greater , a man that became the father of God the son, he worked daily around totally worldly men, in the old testament you read about how sinful the world around him was, but Joseph was never relinquished, to is surroundings. He had a conversion.

 All Jewish people like Joseph believed that they were saved by the Law and the Ten Commandments. A couple of years ago, I brought the sisters to visit one church. They like going around parishes to see the different Nativity Scenes. And this one church we visted, the Nativity Scene looked like many of us in our own lives without a conversion. I didn’t know who to feel sorry for: Jospeh was at distance staring at Our Lady with his hands on his head and Our looked just as confused staring back at him.

In Luke vs 42 you hear the beautiful Magnifica. How many months perhaps had Joseph been with our lady and not experienced the Eternal word in Mary’s womb. Like in Luke chapter 24:32-35 the disciples Jesus, spent years with Our Lord , it wasn’t until they experienced a conversion they see Our Lord.

 Joseph was obedient and had the courage truly see God, because He came. He came as one very small, he came to become the Son of a Jewish carpenter.  The infant Jesus filled Joseph with compassion and hope that he never knew existed.  Because God became so small just for Joseph to hold him in his arms and for us to receive Him in the Eucharist , He’s a God that  totally wants to be loved by sinners. He became a man under Joseph to learn and to understanding anything and everything.