The birth narrative involves the angel visiting and
talking to Mary and Joseph among others. Even though Joseph is let in on the
secret of how Mary has conceived, he does two things in secret. Our culture and
many other cultures see black, dark and even shadows as something bad and
despicable. Joseph who in most part is a silent partner in the narrative has
something to offer us in the form of secrets and shadows.
It is interesting to note that we do or we are
forced to do bad things in the dark or in secret. Perhaps the usage “his/her/my
darkest hour” places “dark” in bad light. Joseph wanted to secretly send away
Mary when he learned that she was carrying a baby. He was going to do something
bad and yet he was trying to be a nice person by doing that. This is when an intervention
by the angel sets things right. But Joseph again secretly supports Mary without
others knowing how she has conceived. It is challenging to see that we do bad
and worse things in secret and once it is dark the real us comes out. Joseph
does something different in being more considerate towards Mary both in secret
and in the dark. He must have swallowed a large male ego to do so and in doing
that he challenges the very notion of darkness and sin. He shows us that we can
after all do good things in the dark and in secret. This is a good lesson when
we think of and meditate upon the birth narrative.
Even though Joseph plays second fiddle to Mary he
does not wait in secret to seek his revenge but rather does so to behave well
with her. The birth narrative this way definitely has Mary in the forefront as
a young girl who bears Jesus but it also shows through Joseph the supporting
role which should be played by men in a society which is clearly anti-women.
This supporting role may not always be played out in the public but in more
private spaces. Families have problems which are seen in private and may never come
to light. The man in the family who is good outside in the light will be
someone else in secret.
The birth narrative offers men especially an
opportunity to travel to our deepest darkness inside and choose to do good
instead of surrendering to the notion that men can and should only do evil
things in private. Joseph is silent but is trying to do something in his
silence as well. He is present when the shepherds and elders come to meet baby
Jesus but it is not a pronounced presence like Mary. It is almost like a
shadow. The shadow is also seen as something which can be done away with
because it also has darkness as a part of it. But Joseph invites us to witness
a shadow of blessing which he turns out to be. He does not limit himself to the
darkest and most evil of thoughts but rather becomes a shadow of blessing to
the child and Mary.
The birth narrative should make us think different
about how darkness and shadows have been seen as something bad and avoidable
just like the birth of a child out of wed lock. Mary is inspired by the Holy
Spirit but she could have been dragged into the darkness of male egoism and a
patriarchal society and yet Joseph decides to do otherwise. Can we also during
the birth of Christ become a shadow of blessing to someone? There are many in
society who are outcasts because of their choice or the community they belong
to. Wouldn’t it be nice to use the shadow and secret initiatives to offer
justice to people who have suffered under shadows and secret decisions?
Joseph defies the thought process of his time and he
denies tradition. He feels that Mary needs his presence and he should offer
whatever he can even though he may not be able to comprehend what he is doing.
Our shadow is something we do not control largely. It is also something we do
not notice always. And yet imagine it becoming a blessing to others? Our shadow can be
our inner most thoughts and desires. It is there and yet we forget it is there.
Joseph realizes his shadow and the strength of his shadow without actually
planning his response to the predicament he found himself under.
We must realize that we are not in the manger or the
rock opening where the baby is wrapped in bands of cloth. Yet our shadow could
be there either when we face it or when we have our backs to it. This shadow of
blessing is a realization that the birth of Christ is indeed not just an event
but also a controversy. It is a controversy of a woman who has conceived of the
Holy Spirit. We can deny it and secretly dismiss Mary or we can go into the
most innermost darkness of our thoughts and become a shadow of blessing.
