Lent Meditation: Day 30- March 19, 2026 - St. Joseph’s Day

📖 Scripture Verse

An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him, Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” — Matthew 1:20-21

🕯️Meditation

The angel counsels Joseph in a dream to take Mary as his wife despite the unusual circumstances of Mary’s pregnancy.  When the angel calls out to Joseph, he names him “Joseph, son of David.”  It is through Joseph’s family line that Jesus has the Davidic lineage that will be so important to the understanding of who he is—King, Lord, Messiah, Savior.  Joseph fully accepts Mary’s child as his own son by the act of giving him his name: Jesus.  Joseph’s role as Jesus’ adopted father is a model for the way in which we understand ourselves to be the adoptive siblings of Christ—he is the only begotten son of God, but we are his brothers and sisters, joined to him through baptism into the family of God.  We praise God for St. Joseph on his feast day for his love and care of Mary and Jesus, and his modeling for the whole church what it means to be a faithful and righteous person.

🙏 Prayer

O God, who from the family of your servant David raised up Joseph to be the guardian of your incarnate Son and the spouse of his virgin mother: Give us grace to imitate his uprightness of life and his obedience to your commands; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (BCP p. 239).

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