Dreams

God gave us such an example of humility in this Great Saint…

Saint Joseph and the Infant Jesus (Unknown)

I have been reflecting on the Dreams of Saint Joseph.

These are significant things.  After all, we are told details of those dreams even twenty centuries after they happened.  Those dreams were presumably recounted to the Apostles even after the death of Saint Joseph, of whom no word is recorded in the Gospels…  So, those dreams must have been significant even in those days…

There were four dreams of Saint Joseph.  And the Saint did not wake from those dreams and say to Himself, how silly I am to dream in this way, it is surely nothing.  He did not wake from those dreams and brush things off.  Rather, he woke from those dreams and got to work.  He accepted that God would perhaps not choose to communicate with him directly during his waking hours, but would instead rely on his goodness while he was asleep to guide him through his humility to where he needed to be.

Imagine how receptive to God’s Grace this Saint is…  It would be as though I had a dream to move my family to South Africa and woke up the next morning, packed the bags and moved.  It would be as though I were discerning my own vocation, and dreamed about what God wanted for me and woke up the next morning and simply did it immediately and without question.  What sort of faith and trust would I need to have to commit to the instructions received even in a dream?

Now, I assume that the dreams were vivid and clear.  But even if they were the most vivid dreams of all, I would not be able to rely on them as Saint Joseph did because I lack both the humility and holiness to actually submit myself to God’s Holy Will.  I require great Grace to be able to do such a thing…

In his first dream, we are told that the Angel appeared to Saint Joseph and told him not to be afraid to take the Blessed Virgin as his wife because the Holy Spirit had conceived the Child in her womb. (Matthew 1:20–21).  This is a significant dream.  Here we are shown that Saint Joseph was so humble that when he knew that the Blessed Virgin was carrying the Messiah he stepped back to allow God the full glory of the relationship.  But God called him back – for He had a purpose for the Saint…

In the second dream, the angel told Saint Joseph to flee to Egypt with Christ and the Blessed Virgin so that they could escape Herod.  And the family got up and left in haste.  They started again as refugees alone and without anything.  (Matthew 2:13)

The third dream we are told about came later.  After the death of Herod, the angel directed Saint Joseph to return to Israel.  (Matthew 2:19–20).  What great faith this is.  The Saint did not have access to the internet or newspapers.  He would not have had any way of verifying that Herod was indeed dead and that his precious Family were indeed safe, and yet, he returned to Israel nevertheless…

And in the fourth dream, Saint Joseph avoided the area of Judea as instructed settling in Nazareth, which was in the region of Galilee. (Matthew 2:22).

And I have been thinking about this today as I have been reflecting on the faith of this Saint.  And I am quite overcome.  For it seems to me that God gave us such an example of humility in this Great Saint…

For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.