Matthew 1:18-25

This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about.

When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph,

but before they lived together,

she was found with child through the Holy Spirit.

Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man,

yet unwilling to expose her to shame,

decided to divorce her quietly.

Such was his intention when, behold,

the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,

“Joseph, son of David,

do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.

For it is through the Holy Spirit

that this child has been conceived in her.

She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus,

because he will save his people from their sins.”

All this took place to fulfill

what the Lord had said through the prophet:

Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son,

and they shall name him Emmanuel,

which means “God is with us.”

When Joseph awoke,

he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him

and took his wife into his home.

He had no relations with her until she bore a son,

and he named him Jesus.

Opening Prayer: Lord God, I thank you for sending your only-begotten Son to be with us and save us. I praise you for your marvelous works. Help me to know my role in your plan of salvation and sanctification.

Encountering the Word of God

1. The Question of Jesus’ Genesis: Yesterday, we began our reading of the infancy narratives of Matthew and Luke. We meditated on the genealogical lineage of Jesus in the Gospel according to Matthew. The genealogy, however, didn’t actually mention who generated Jesus. Instead of saying, “Joseph begat Jesus,” it said that Jesus was born of Mary. It left the question of Jesus’ genesis or generation open. Today’s Gospel answers that open question. Matthew says: “This is how the genesis (birth) of Jesus Christ came about … [Mary] was found with child through the Holy Spirit.” This means that, in addition to Jesus’ human origin as the “son of Mary,” Matthew reveals to us that Jesus has a divine origin and genesis!

2. The Virginal Genesis of Jesus: Mary is introduced by Matthew as a woman “betrothed to Joseph.” This means she was Joseph’s wife, but that they did not yet live together. To understand this, we need to recall that in ancient Judaism, there were two stages in the marriage process. A couple would begin the first stage by exchanging their consent before witnesses. After this betrothal, the wife would continue to live with her parents for up to a year. Often, the husband would use this time to prepare their future home. The second stage of marriage, often celebrated a year after the betrothal, was the couple’s “coming together,” in which the marriage was consummated. But Matthew insists that when Joseph took Mary “into his home,” they did not consummate their marriage on their wedding night or in the months leading up to Jesus’ birth. This provides grounds for the Church’s teaching that Mary remained a perpetual virgin and yet was the Mother of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. She is the Virgin Mother!

3. “YHWH saves” and “God-with-Us”: The angel commands Joseph to name the child of Mary, “Jesus.” The name “Yeshua” in Hebrew means “YHWH saves.” And the angel indicates that Jesus will save his people from their sins. Jesus saves us not only from the consequences of sin – from eternal separation from God – but also from sinning. He came to enable us to live holy lives (see Bergsma, Word of the Lord: year A, 42). Matthew indicates that all of this took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel.” In Hebrew, “Im” means “with,” the suffix “nu” means “us,” and “el” means “God.” In Jesus, God is truly with us, because Jesus is true God and true man. This makes Jesus the perfect high priest. He is the perfect bridge (pontifex) between God and man. He is perfectly faithful as the Son of God, and he is perfectly merciful because of his solidarity with us.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, the Righteous Shoot of David, reign in my heart! Make it yours. Dispel any darkness or evil so that I may walk in your light. You, the Son of God, are truly with me and dwell within me.

Living the Word of God: How do I experience the presence of God in my life? Do I encounter God primarily in Scripture, in the Eucharist, in the love of my family, or in the poor? How am I called today to exercise my ministerial priesthood or my common priesthood (CCC, 1546-1547)?