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We don’t often see a connection between St. John the Apostle and St. Joseph, but there are some interesting scriptural grounds to do so.  “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.”  “Then he said to the disciple, ‘Behold, your mother.’ And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.”  Both St. Joseph and St. John were made part of Jesus’ immediate human family by revelation.  We see that the way to a family bond with Jesus is by a special relationship with the Virgin Mary.  Both St. John and St. Joseph were revealed what kind of relationship they were to have with the Blessed Virgin Mary.  In the case of St. John, he is told to “look at,” or to “behold,” his “mother.”  The same word is used by John the Baptist to indicate the Lamb of God, “behold the Lamb.”  St. Joseph is invited to “take” the Virgin Mary, his “wife.”  This word for “take” also means “receive,” or “set aside for a specific purpose.”  We can see that St. Joseph is called upon by the angel to “take the child and his mother,” each time he has a dream that requires him to move.  This word has both an active sense and a passive sense in Greek, which means we could read, “Do not be afraid to receive Mary your wife,” in the sense that God is giving Joseph the Virgin Mary.  Joseph’s response is also to “receive,” but in the active sense of “taking.” read more

It can be difficult to truly hear someone out when we feel threatened.  When we are in charge or have a position of authority sometimes we are challenged by people who have better answers or are better qualified to lead than ourselves.  The temptation to stay in control at all costs, or to assert ourselves and ascend to a higher and stronger position can become intense.  The strongest position is always the truth because the truth doesn’t require  human authority to reinforce it.

In today’s Gospel, we can see how being in a position of authority is not the same as having authority.  We can also see how afraid people who have authority are of losing it.  Jesus is the only one whose person itself is Truth.  This gives Him absolute authority.  It is nothing He has to prove, His Words come from a place of incontestable reliability.  Jesus is not trying to make a political power grab.  When He speaks, living water begins to gush and flow within the hearts of his listeners.  The charism that belongs to Jesus is supernatural authority that stands on the very nature of the Words He speaks and the effects they have on the minds and hearts of those who truly listen. read more

“Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgement.” It seems paradoxical that we were created with the ability to form judgements but Jesus is constantly telling us our perceptions are wrong.  Right judgment requires correcting not only our tendency to judge the faults of others, but also correcting our vision of God, ourselves, and our expectations.

We have much more confidence in our own judgment in general than is good for us.  We can recognize from our human experience that it is wiser to suppose that perhaps we do not know than to be convinced we are right.  Socrates said, “The only thing I do know is that I do not know.”  Things that seem good don’t always turn out to be so, and God brings greater goods out of apparent evils.  Faith moves us to hit pause on our snap judgements so that we can listen to a higher perspective. read more