Lenten Campaign 2025
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Most Christians know that St. Joseph does not actively "speak" in the Bible and that the Gospel writers did not write down any dialogue St. Joseph had with the Holy Family.
However, the Gospel writers did record a single word that St. Joseph spoke.
That word was, "Jesus."
St. Matthew explains how an angel appeared to St. Joseph in a dream and told him what he was to name the child in Mary's womb:
[A]n angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” - Matthew 1:20-21
St. Joseph did precisely that when it came time to circumcise and officially name his child.
Circumcison
The Catholic Encyclopedia explains how the child was named at the ceremony of circumcision:
The eighth day was prescribed, even should it be the Sabbath (see John 7:22-23). A name was given, as in Luke 1:59 and 2:21, to commemorate the change of the patriarch's name from Abram to Abraham, when God made the covenant with him and made circumcision the sign of it (Genesis 17:5).
As head of the household, St. Joseph would have been the one to officially pronounce the name of, "Jesus."
St. Matthew records how, "When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took his wife, but knew her not until she had borne a son; and he called his name Jesus" (Matthew 1:24-25).
St. John Paul II reflected on this action of St. Joseph in his encyclical, Redemptoris Custos:
At the circumcision Joseph names the child "Jesus." This is the only name in which there is salvation (cf. Acts 4:12). Its significance had been revealed to Joseph at the moment of his "annunciation": "You shall call the child Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins" (cf. Mt 1:21). In conferring the name, Joseph declares his own legal fatherhood over Jesus, and in speaking the name he proclaims the child's mission as Savior.
It is fitting that the just man, Joseph, would be recorded as only saying, "Jesus."
St. Joseph is a model of humility, entirely devoted to his son, Jesus. His example should inspire us to have a similar relationship to Jesus, making sure Jesus' name is always on our lips.
If we can only say one word in life, we should make it "count" and follow in St. Joseph's footsteps.
