Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Joseph, Mary and Jesus

Our families shape our characters and identities. I wonder if the same was true of Jesus. Where did he learn to have such compassion for people who were rejected by his society as sinners? Of course the theological answer is that Jesus being God had godlike compassion. And that is true. But I just wonder how God used Mary and Joseph to contribute to the character development of Jesus. Jesus surely grew up hearing the story of his virgin birth. I grew up hearing how I was with a blue skin color like the Indian god Krishna. Extraordinary events in a family are usually told and retold. Jesus' family I am assuming was no exception in that regard. Jesus also most likely grew up experiencing how his mom was shamed by his society, and accused of being an adulteress.  After all the society did not believe in Mary's story of being impregnated by God. Some Jews from as early as the second century accused Jesus of being the illegitimate son of a Roman soldier. A veiled reference to that can be found in John 8:41. Here Jews might just be saying to Jesus, "We are not like you, illegitimate!" Beside the social shame that his family suffered, did Mary's taking on the shame for God and  Joseph's boldness in sharing in that shame shaped Jesus' character. After all it is quite possible that Joseph was accused of getting Mary pregnant before marriage or of condoning adultery. Roman law of that time treated a man who did not divorce his wife accused of adultery as a panderer, a pimp.  The society in which Joseph lived one's honor meant everything, and Joseph risked loosing his honor by marrying Mary. Therefore I wonder if Jesus got from his mom his commitment to suffer in service of God, and from Joseph the ability to share in the shame of others by identifying with them. The life and the cross of Christ certainly is marked by both .

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