whole life, for it touched his char acter, his future and his happiness. What puzzled him was its unex pectedness. What he knew of Mary indicated that she was a pure maiden and not the sort of person to be guilty of that kind of sin. Yet, what was he to believe? The facts seemed to shatter all his settled opinions and hopes. Joseph had to act and act quick ly. As a godly man, he could not continue with the betrothal. To marry a girl who had committed a sex offense was to dishonor the law of God, an act that was repul sive to Joseph. Two courses of action were open to Joseph. When a man suspected his betrothed wife of infidelity, he could follow legal procedure by go ing to a magistrate and laying his accusation before him. The magis trate would then examine the girl. If she were guilty of the offense, he would order her to be put to death. This course could bring Mary into public disgrace, Joseph knew. While he could exercise his legal rights, the law did not compel him to follow this procedure. Another course was possible. He could put her away privately by giving her a bill of divorce (Deut. 24:1). In it, he could specify the cause for di vorce as mildly as possible, or he could omit the reason altogether. This would keep the matter as quiet as possible. For, says Lenski, “ let ters of divorce were both private and legal, needing no publication before a court.” After much painful deliberation, Joseph came to a decision. He had already pledged to Mary a deep affection and loyalty that only death could break, for he loved her dear ly. And, being a kind man, he de cided not to make the full disclo sure that the law permitted. In stead, he would dissolve the mar riage contract without exposing her to unnecessary shame and infamy or even death. Then, the betrothal at an end, Mary could go back to her home and parents. True, it would leave Mary and her child in disgrace, but a high-principled-man could do no less. 11
THE MAN WE FORGET A T CHRISTMAS by Gordon Chilvers
W hen we think of Christmas we easily forget one of the most prominent characters in the origi nal scene. We rightly make Christ promi nent at that first Christmas. Then quite rightly we remember Mary, the next important figure. We con sider the angels who announced the birth of Christ and the shep herds who received their message. We think of the wise men who came some time after Jesus' birth and the star which guided them to the house. We also think of the cattle who could have been there. We have a place for an inn-keeper and even his wife though the Bible knows neither; and the local situa tion does not require their pres ence. Ye we scarcely mention one of the Christmas heroes, Joseph. Joseph is easily overlooked be cause he did nothing that was glamorous. His name would not have appeared in today’s press headlines. Further, he never said anything that shook his nation, or even his own village. Nor did he say anything that God reckoned worthy of preservation for posterity, for no word of his is recorded for us in the Bible. Even so, Joseph’s life is worthy of our careful attention. He was a carpenter by trade and a descen dant of the illustrious King David though he was a poor man then. Yet neither of these facts makes him outstanding. Joseph had to face a situation so difficult that few men of his day or ours would have equalled him in courage. True, he needed wisdom DECEMBER, 1970
to be given in an unusual way be fore he could solve his problem. Yet he acted magnificently when he discovered the facts. Joseph was asked to believe a story that shocked him. He was betrothed to a girl named Mary, likely 14 or 15 years old at the time. Betrothal had far more seri ous consequences for a Jew than an engagement to marry has for us today. Betrothal was a step towards marriage that had full legal signifi cance. It included a ceremony that took place before witnesses, “ em bodying the marriage vows. No fu r ther promise followed. In later times it was ratified in writing” (R. C. H. Lenski). After the betrothal, a woman was treated as if she had been actually married. “ The union could not Ipe dissolved, except by regular di vorce; breach of faithfulness was regarded as adultery; and the prop erty of the woman became virtual ly that of her betrothed, unless he had expressly renounced it ” (Al fred Edersheim). When Joseph was betrothed to Mary, he had the rights and respon sibilities of a husband. He was re ferred to as “ her husband," and she was referred to as “ thy wife." The marriage took place usually a year after the betrothal, an inter val referred to as the time “ before they came together.” It was at this time a strange report came to Joseph’s ears. He lea rned th a t Mary, his espoused wife, was pregnant. That was serious. It suggested moral laxity. This situation affected his
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