“This is how
Jesus Christ came to be born. His mother
Mary was betrothed to Joseph; [footnote omitted] but before they came to live
together she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. •Her husband Joseph, being a man of honour
and wanting to spare her publicity, decided to divorce her informally. •He had made up his mind to do this when the
angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do
not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is
in her by the Holy Spirit. •She will
give birth to a son and you must name him Jesus, because he is the one who is
to save [footnote omitted] his people from their sins.’ . . .
•When Joseph woke up he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to
do; he took his wife to his home •and, though he had not had intercourse with
her, she gave birth to a son; and he named him Jesus.” Matthew 1:18-21, 24-251
“In the sixth
month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the House of David; and the
virgin’s name was Mary.” Luke 1:26-271
Both of these
gospels state that Mary was “betrothed” to Joseph, which is often interpreted
to mean that they were not married before Mary conceived the child Jesus. The thing is God gave Moses the Ten Commandments
and commanded: “You shall not commit
adultery.” Exodus 20:141
The thing is,
would God break His own commandment and have His own Son, Jesus, born out of
wedlock? I think not.
Please
consider that Moses asked God the Father how we can live with one another on
this His good earth. God gladly
accommodated Moses by giving Him the Ten Commandments. God the Father, because He is Power and
Might, does not need to say or do anything twice. He knows what is needed and gets it right the
first time. God has never once changed
His Commandments and Jesus, His Son, affirmed them, and tightened them up a bit
while He was here on the earth. For
example, adultery.
Please
consider how human beings interpret the words of the Bible. If a human being wants to achieve a certain point
of view with other human beings, the word “betrothed” is taken in the modern
sense to mean that a man and a woman are engaged to be married and that Mary
and Joseph were living with each other without the benefit of marriage (also
known by some human beings as “living in sin”) and that Mary had a child out of
wedlock. How many mothers and fathers
have heard this argument from their child when the child wants to live with a
man or a woman before marriage?
The thing is
what is sin? Sin is an offense against
God. And how do we offend God? By breaking His Ten Commandments. Therefore a sinner is one who has broken God’s
Ten Commandments.
Please
consider the following chronology:
January 23 Mary espoused to Joseph.
“The espousals took place, I think, upon our 23rd of
January.”2 (Page 187)
“When the Blessed Virgin had reached
the age of fourteen and was to be dismissed from the Temple with seven other
maidens to be married, . . .”3 (Page 129)
When Joseph and Mary arrived in
Bethlehem to register for the tax, “Joseph was five and forty years old. He was thirty years and, I think, three
months older than Mary.”2 (Page
218)
“[Catherine Emmerich always had
these visions of the story of the Holy Family on the days appointed by the
Church for their celebration; nevertheless, the date on which she saw some of
these events sometimes differed from the ecclesiastical feast-days. For instance, she saw the real historical
date of the birth of Christ a whole month earlier, on November 25th,
which according to her visions coincided with the tenth day of the month Kislev
in that year. . . .”3 (Page
138)
“[On March 25th, 1821, Sister Emmerich said: ] Last night I saw the Annunciation as a Feast of the Church, and was once more definitely informed that at this moment the Blessed Virgin had already been with child for four weeks. This was expressly told me because I had already seen the Annunciation on the 25th of February, but had rejected the vision and had not related it. . . .”3 (Page 140)
“Now, you can read this: look, there it is: Christ was born when the year of the world 3997 was not yet quite completed. . . .”3 (Page 205)
Please
consider the following regarding the Jewish marriage customs at the time of
Joseph and Mary.
“Several
Biblical passages refer to the negotiations requisite for the arranging of a
marriage (Gen. xxiv.; Song of Songs viii. 8; Judges xiv. 2-7), which were conducted
by members of the two families involved, or their deputies, and required
usually the consent of the prospective bride (if of age); but when the
agreement had been entered into, it was definite and binding upon both groom
and bride, who were considered as man and wife in all legal and religious
aspects, except that of actual cohabitation.
“The root . . . ("to
betroth"), from which the Talmudic abstract . . . ("betrothal")
is derived, must be taken in this sense; i.e., to contract an actual
though incomplete marriage. In two of the passages in which it occurs the
betrothed woman is directly designated as "wife" (II Sam. iii. 14,
"my wife whom I have betrothed" ("erasti"), and Deut. xxii.
24, where the betrothed is designated as "the wife of his neighbor").
In strict accordance with this sense the rabbinical law declares that the
betrothal is equivalent to an actual marriage and only to be dissolved by a
formal divorce.”5
Please
consider Joseph’s words to Sister Mary Ephrem at Our Lady of America on March
18, 1958:
“Mine was
perfect obedience to the Divine Will, as it was shown and made known to me by
the Jewish law and religion. To be
careless in this is most displeasing to God and will be severely punished in
the next world.”6
Please
consider the following passage as revealed to the Venerable Anne Catherine
Emmerich.
“On the
command of the high priest, Joseph now came, dressed in his best, to the Temple
at Jerusalem. He, too, had to hold a
branch in his hand during the prayer and sacrifice, and as he was about to lay
this on the altar before the Holy of Holies, a white flower like a lily
blossomed out of the top of it, and I saw over him an appearance of light like
the Holy Ghost. [Footnote omitted]
Joseph was now recognized as appointed by God to be the bridegroom of the
Blessed Virgin, and was presented to her by the priests in the presence of her
mother. Mary, submissive to the Will of
God, accepted him meekly as her bridegroom, for she knew that all things were
possible with God, who had accepted her vow to belong to Him alone, body and
soul.”3 (Page 132)
Please
consider the following information regarding Jewish marriage customs at the
time of Joseph and Mary.
“After the
betrothal a period of twelve months was allowed to pass before the marriage was
completed by the formal home-taking ("nissu'in," "liḳḳuḥin").
After the dispersal of the Jews had
brought them into contact with the Western peoples, this arrangement was felt
to be inconvenient and out of harmony with the prevailing views. It therefore
became customary to perform the entire marriage ceremony, betrothal and
home-taking ("erusin" and "nissu'in"), at one time; and an
affiancing or engagement similar to that prevailing among non-Jews was
introduced. This was not an entire
innovation, as its roots already existed in the custom of "shiddukin"
or consent to marry, which existed in the days of the Talmud and probably also
in the Biblical age. It was considered
indispensable by the rabbis that a man should gain the good-will and consent of
his prospective bride before entering upon a contract of marriage.”5
“The wedding
of Mary and Joseph, which lasted for seven or eight days, was celebrated on
Mount Sion in Jerusalem in a house which was often hired out for festivities of
this kind.”3 (Page 133)
“Betrothal in
its legal sense ("erusin") is performed in the following manner: After the ordinary benediction over wine, the
person performing the ceremony continues as follows: "Blessed art Thou, O Lord, our God, King
of the universe, who hast sanctified us with Thy commandments and given us
commandments concerning forbidden connections, and hast forbidden unto us those
who are merely betrothed, and permitted unto us those lawfully married to us
through 'canopy' ["ḥuppah"] and 'betrothal' ["ḳiddushin"].
Blessed are Thou, O Lord, who sanctifiest Thy people Israel through ḥuppah and ḳiddushin,"
after which the groom hands to the bride a ring or some object of value (not
less than a peruṭah, the smallest current coin), saying, "Be thou
betrothed unto me with this ring [or object] in accordance with the laws of
Moses and Israel" ("kedat Mosheh we-Yisrael").5
This quartz ring (the Santo Anello) is the wedding ring given by St Joseph to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
"Courtesy of Christopher Perretti.”4
“I saw the whole course of the marriage
of Joseph and Mary and the wedding banquet and all the festivities. . .”3 (Page 136)
“Soon after
the Blessed Virgin’s marriage I saw her in Joseph’s house in Nazareth. . .
Joseph had gone away with two donkeys, I think to fetch either his tools or
something that he had inherited. He seemed to me to be on his way home. Anna’s
second husband and some other men had been at the house in the morning, but had
gone away again. Besides the Blessed Virgin and two girls of her own age. . .,
I saw in the house Anna and her widowed cousin. . . .I saw these four women
going busily about the house and then walking at leisure together in the
courtyard. . . .Then, after eating some vegetables set before them, they
separated. . . .The two girls went to their separate room, and Mary, too, went
into her bedchamber. . . .
“Mary let the
veil fall over her face and crossed her hands (but not her fingers) before her
breast. I saw her fervently praying thus for a long time, with her face raised
to heaven. She was imploring God for redemption, for the promised King, and
beseeching Him that her prayer might have some share in sending Him. She knelt
long in an ecstasy of prayer; then she bowed her head on to her breast.
“But now at
her right hand there poured down such a mass of light in a slanting line from
the ceiling of the room that I felt myself pressed back by it against the wall
near the door. I saw in this light a shining white youth, with flowing yellow
hair, floating down before her. It was the Angel Gabriel. He gently moved his
arms away from his body as he spoke to her. . . . Mary turned her veiled head
slightly towards the right, but she was shy and did not look up. But the angel
went on speaking, and as if at his command Mary turned her face a little
towards him, raised her veil slightly, and answered. The angel again spoke and
Mary lifted her veil, looked at him and answered with the holy words: ‘Behold
the handmaid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to thy word.’. . .
“As soon as
the Blessed Virgin had spoken the words, ‘Be it done unto me according to thy
word’, I saw the Holy Ghost in the appearance of a winged figure, but not in
the form of a dove as usually represented. The head was like the face of a man,
and light was spread like wings beside the figure, from whose breast and hands
I saw three streams of light pouring down towards the right side of the Blessed
Virgin and meeting as they reached her. This light streaming in upon her right
side caused the Blessed Virgin to become completely transfused with radiance
and as though transparent; . . . After this penetrating radiance I saw the
angel disappear, with the path of light out of which he had come. . . .and I
saw how there fell . . . on to Our Lady. . .a shower of white rose-buds each
with its little green leaf.”3
(Pages 140-143)
“Some days
after the Annunciation St. Joseph returned to Nazareth and made further
arrangements for working at his craft in the house; he had never lived in
Nazareth before and had not spent more than a few days there. Joseph knew nothing of the Incarnation; Mary
was the Mother of the Lord, but also the handmaid of the Lord, and she kept His
secret in all humility. When the Blessed
Virgin felt that the Word was made Flesh in her, she was conscious of a great
desire to pay an immediate visit to her cousin Elisabeth at Jutta near Hebron,
whom the angel had told her was now six months with child. As the time was now drawing near when Joseph
wished to go up to Jerusalem for the Passover, Our Lady decided to accompany
him in order to help Elisabeth in her pregnancy. Joseph therefore started with the Blessed
Virgin on the journey to Jutta.[footnote omitted]”3 (Page 146)
“The Blessed
Virgin returned home to Nazareth after John’s birth and before his
circumcision. Joseph came to meet her half-way. . . .
“When Joseph
travelled back with the Blessed Virgin during the second half of her journey
from Jutta to Nazareth, he noticed from her figure that she was with child, and
was sore beset by trouble and doubt, for he knew nothing of the Angel’s
annunciation to Our Lady.” . . . The angelic salutation happened before Joseph
returned to Nazareth. Mary in shy
humility had kept God’s secret to herself. Joseph, though greatly disquieted by
what he had perceived, said nothing, but struggled in silence with his doubts.[Footnote
omitted] The Blessed Virgin, who had foreseen this trouble, became thoughtful
and serious, which only increased St. Joseph’s uneasiness. . . . Joseph’s
uneasiness increased, however, to such an extent that, now that Mary was
preparing to return to him in his house, he made up his mind to leave her and
to disappear in secret. While he was
harbouring this thought, an Angel appeared to him in a dream and reassured
him.”3 (Pages 163-164)
Following the
birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, and shortly before Joseph, Mary and the baby Jesus
departed Bethlehem to return to their home in Nazareth, the following
celebration occurred.
“Joseph had taken
advantage Mary’s withdrawal to the tomb cave, and with the help of the
shepherds had adorned the whole interior of the Crib Cave. It was festooned with flower garlands, both
walls and roof, and in the center stood a table. . . The
whole cave was full of light and splendor.
The Child Jesus in His little basket cradle was placed upon a stool on
the table. He sat upright as He had done
on the lap of His Mother at the adoration of the Kings. Joseph and Mary were standing on either side
of Him. They were adorned with wreaths,
and they drank something out of a glass.
. . . All were very happy and
full of emotion. It was the anniversary
of Joseph and Mary’s espousals.”2
(Pages 278-279)
Please pray for all of those priests and
ministers who, from the pulpit, try to explain that Joseph and Mary were not
married when Mary was asked to be the Mother of God’s Son. Please pray that they may be re-formed in accordance
with the tenets and beliefs of the Church which God, the Father and His Son,
Jesus established.
1All Biblical quotations are taken
from The Jerusalem Bible, Copyright © 1966, 1967 and 1968 by Darton,
Longman and Todd Ltd. and Doubleday, a Division of Random House, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Printed in the United States of America March
2000 First Doubleday Reader’s Edition
2The
following paragraphs are taken from the book The Life of Jesus Christ and
Biblical Revelations, Volume I, From the Visions of the Venerable Anne
Catherine Emmerich, Originally published in 1914 by Desclée, De Brouwer
& Co. of Lille, Paris, and Bruges, in conjunction with The Sentinel Press
of New York. Reprinted by Academy Library Guild in 1954, and later by
Apostolate of Christian Action, both of Fresno, California. Reprinted in
1979 by TAN Books and Publishers, Inc. Retypeset and published again in
1986 by TAN Books and Publishers, Inc.
3Taken
from the book The life of the Blessed Virgin Mary From the Visions of Ven. Anne
Catherine Emmerich, translated by Sir Michael Palairet, First published by
Burns and Oates, Limited, London, England (1954)
4Taken
from the website Crusaders of the Immaculate Heart, op54rosary.ning.com, © 2018
Created by Dawn Marie
5Taken from the article “BETROTHAL (
in Talmudic Hebrew):” By: Marcus
Jastrow, Bernard Drachman, Taken from the
website JewishEncyclopedia, © 2002-2011, JewishEncyclopedia.com All rights reserved
in Talmudic Hebrew):” By: Marcus
Jastrow, Bernard Drachman, Taken from the
website JewishEncyclopedia, © 2002-2011, JewishEncyclopedia.com All rights reserved
6The
following paragraphs are taken from the website www.ourladyofamerica.org,
copyright 2018 Langsenkamp Family Apostolate -- All Rights Reserved. This site is an informational Internet source
of the Our Lady of America devotion and is run by the Langsenkamp Family
Apostolate of Indianapolis, Indiana, to spread devotion to Our Lady of America.
Copyright Bernardette Grant, 2010, 2018 All Rights Reserved
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