101219 - Yr A - Advent 4

Matthew 1:18-25 - Joseph's Christmas Story

This is the final week of our Advent Conspiracy theme. The topic this week is "Love All" and the classic Advent theme is "Love".

Verses
1:18 - engagement was legally binding - with child from the Holy Spirit is an ambiguous sentence. How do you read it?
1:19 - Joseph was righteous means he abided by the Mosaic law - quiet divorce meant with only 2 witnesses as opposed to stoning
1:20 - Joseph gets the angel visitation in Matthew - Mary gets the angel visitation in Luke
angels always seem to begin with "Don't be afraid!"
child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit - again, How do you read that?
1:21 - Jesus' name in Hebrew is Yeshua (Joshua) which literally means "Yahweh saves". Jesus is the Helenized version of Joshua
1:22 - one of Matthew's prime concerns is to show us how Jesus fulfills Old Testament prophecy
1:23 - I've never understood why if the Isaiah text says they should name him Emmanuel and the angel said to name him Yeshua that this somehow proves the prophecy true?!  Maybe it's his middle name? ;-)
1:24 - Joseph is inspired to do right by Mary after his spiritual vision
1:25 - seems a compromise of doing the right thing but then being righteous again by the law

Discussions...

The Classic Virgin Birth Question
Here's the definitive answer to the classic question, was Mary a Virgin. The answer, according to the literal translation is.....it's impossible to say.  The words simply have multiple meanings and can be argued authentically either way.

• Isaiah 7 - "a virgin shall conceive" - original Hebrew word here was "almah" which means young woman of marriagable age, which suggests but does not demand, virginity. The literal Hebrew word for virgin was "betulah", except for the few places where it doesn't literally mean virgin.  Confused yet?
• Greek version (Septuagint) of Old Testament translated almah as "parthenos" which in Greek means virgin - except where parthenos is used to translate "na'arah" which simply means young girl with no other connotations whatsoever.

If you only had Matthew's version, how different would the Christmas story be from the popular version?

So, was Joseph at the start a good guy or a coward?

Describe Joseph's dialogue in this story.  How about in Luke's version?

Describe Mary's role in this birth narrative.

Some scholars suggest that by not divorcing Mary Joseph is forfeiting inheritance rights of the "legitimate" first-born son.  Quite an act of love!

What might this story have to say to our culture today if we put it in the following bold terms?

• Joe knocked up Mary before marriage, but instead of bailing on her he stayed and took care of his responsibilities honourably - and instead of being raised by a marginalized single parent the kid had a chance to really do something with his life.

What is it about the Christmas narratives that has so captured the imaginations of our society? (Christmas was a minor feast for centuries - Easter has always been the bigger deal)

• Why is how Jesus was born such a big deal these days?
• What's at stake for you in Jesus' birth? (I guess how you interpret Jesus' life and purpose will determine how you view his birth.)
• If Joseph is Jesus' biological father, what changes for you in the story or meaning of his birth?

Love All - how does this theme play out in this passage?
Shalom! (and Merry Christmas!)