Essence formed by experience

Solemnity of Saint Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Gospel: Matthew 1:16, 18-21, 24a
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/031925.cfm

If Jesus was only fully God and not fully human, it wouldn’t have mattered who his parents were as his actions would have been ultimately divine regardless of the circumstances. To think of Jesus as being fully human, there was a need to have the right parents, or the right community raising him. We know that as human beings, we are developed by both nature and nurture. It’s not just what’s in our essence, but how that essence is formed through experience. The community we are raised in and the experiences we have help mold and shape our essence to make us who we are. We are dynamic and refined overtime through our experience. We are a combination of our nature, our nurture, and the choices we make in our free agency. Regardless of our nature and our nurture, we always have the right to choose otherwise.

The community raising us makes a significant difference in our formation. Jesus was no exception to this. Given the purpose of his mission and the person he was going to become required a certain nature and nurture coming together. In today’s gospel we learn about Joseph. We learn that he was a righteous man who was unwilling to expose his fiancee to shame. He was devout and compassionate. He was principled in how he lived, but he wasn’t going to use those principles to tear others down, even one he assumed cheated on him. He was humble and lived with honor.

We see these traits in Jesus as well. Jesus stayed true to his purpose, his principles, and his devotion. He met people where they were at and treated them with compassion and mercy. He didn’t hold their past sins against them, but focused on how they could be transformed. You can see Joseph in the practices of Jesus, because Joseph helped form Jesus into the person he would become.

May we choose to do the good as Joseph did and help mold those around us to the glory of God.