Joseph remained in Egypt until the time of Herod's death. The angel again appears to him, and bids him return to Judea, as if the divine Infant were not sure of His life until His enemies had disappeared. What frailty, what meekness in this little Child! Can this be a God? Without the least hesitation, Joseph treats the Child with the same reverence, and adores Him, as if he had seen Him working miracles. Never was such a faith found in Israel. Nowadays we could not find such a faith. “From a want of this noble faith,” St. Teresa says, “the world is full of sin.” Ask St. Joseph to obtain for us a faith similar to his. Faith is a gift and a virtue. By this gift our intellect is enlightened, we know God, and confide in Him. By the virtue of faith we use this light, and let it shine on all our actions. Let us not be satisfied to bow down our intellect under the influence of the great grace of the gift of faith; we should regulate all the actions of our life according to the dictates and laws of this faith, and live according to it. St. Joseph can obtain such graces for us, if we pray to him.
Prayer.
Holy St. Joseph, spouse of Mary, etc., etc.
Seventeenth Day.
St. Joseph possesses another great virtue: it is his obedience. From his childhood he observed [pg 114] with conscientious exactitude all the laws of God. Without a murmur he accompanied Mary to Bethlehem in a severe time of the year, and with Mary so soon to give birth to the Child Jesus, to fulfil the command of a heathen prince. When the command was given to take up the Child and flee into Egypt, he was ready. But one word is necessary: he does not consider any plans for flight, but executes the command without a moment's delay. In many cases he could have alleged causes of inconvenience, or of his not understanding how it could be accomplished; he might have asked the angel for an explanation, saying, how comes it that a few days ago you announced that this Jesus is to be the Redeemer of His people, and now He is to fly before His enemies? He will not be able to free His people afterwards, when now He cannot hold His ground. But he subjected his reason to his faith, and obeyed.
Prayer.
Holy St. Joseph, spouse of Mary, etc., etc.