The dogmas of the Catholic Church are teachings that the Church has declared definitively. These teachings are to be held by all the faithful as a part of being Catholic. Most dogmas have been declared by Ecumenical Councils, which are the gathering of all bishops, with the approval of the Pope, but some dogmas have been declared by the Pope himself directly.
Over the centuries, the Church has established four dogmas about the Virgin Mary: 1) Mary's Divine Motherhood, which makes her the Mother of God, 2) Mary's Immaculate Conception, meaning that she was conceived without original sin, 3) Mary's Perpetual Virginity, having remained a virgin before, during, and after the birth of Christ, and 4) Mary's Assumption into Heaven body and soul at the completion of her earthly life.
All Catholic teachings about the Virgin Mary serve to reinforce teachings about Christ. This Sunday's Gospel reading relates to the dogma of Mary's Perpetual Virginity. The teaching that Mary remained a virgin during her whole life reinforces the divine origin of Christ. There can be no confusion as to who Christ's father was. There can be no suggestion that Christ was conceived through regular human means.
In the Gospel reading for this Sunday, we see that Joseph finds out that Mary is pregnant, knowing that he is not the father. The penalty for a young woman who became pregnant out of wedlock in their cultural context was quite severe. She was to be taken to the edge of the village and stoned to death, which is a form of execution whereby people throw rocks at a person until he or she is dead. Given the tight-knit communities of the time, the stoning would not be done by strangers but by the relatives, friends, and neighbors of the person in question.
When Mary agrees to become the Mother of God, she knows that she is taking a huge risk. She could be accused of immoral behavior by her community and could be stoned to death as a result. But she trusts in God completely.
Joseph, for his part, has a choice to make. He could expose Mary to the community, in which case she would be killed in a horrible way. Instead, he plans to separate from her quietly. We don't know what he was thinking as he was making his decision. Did he believe her to be guilty? Did he feel betrayed but then forgave her and refused to exact the punishment that he would have inflicted in her?
Or perhaps Joseph knew exactly what Mary's situation was, that she was the Mother of God, and perhaps he considered himself unworthy to be the foster father of God Incarnate. Whatever the case, Joseph trusted. Once he heard God's plan for him through the angel, he submitted and trusted in how God's plan would unfold.
Interestingly, there are no words attributed to Joseph in the Bible. However, the angel tells Joseph to name the child Jesus, which of course he does. So the text implies that Joseph spoke the name of Jesus to Mary and the others in their circle. Thus, Joseph has one word, one message for us through the Scriptures - the holy name of Jesus.
The Wisdom Literature of the Bible, which provides advice on wholesome living, speaks about the importance of moderating our speech. The biblical wisdom is that the fewer words we speak, the better, because the less we speak, the less likely it is for us to fall into foolish, ill-advised, or sinful speech. I must confess that this maxim is a bit of a personal challenge for me because, as anyone who knows me can attest, I love to talk. But regardless of how much we talk, let us be like Jospeh. Let's make sure that our words always point to Jesus. Let us pray that those who hear us speak will be drawn closer to Jesus as a result.
Much like Joseph, the entirety of the Old Testament points toward Jesus. The Second Reading, the passage from Isaiah prophesying the coming of the Messiah is a very clear example. But it's not just the obvious passages that anticipate Christ. All of the Old Testament does. We can understand the Old Testament fully only through the lens of Jesus.
Just as our words should be like Joseph, always pointing toward Christ, our lives should also resemble the Old Testament in pointing toward him at all times. As we near the end of the Advent season and draw close to Christmas, let us examine how fully our lives are oriented toward Christ. As others see into our lives, will they be encouraged to welcome Christ into theirs this Christmas?
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The readings for the Fourth Sunday of Advent, Cycle A, are:
Isaiah 7:10-14
Psalm 24:1-2, 3-4, 5-6
Matthew 1:18-24
The full text can be found at the USCCB website.
Photo Credit: Overview of advent wreath in 2023 at Masarykovo náměstí street in Třebíč, Třebíč District from Wikimedia Commons.
