Was St Joseph a good father

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I think being the son of Joseph would have been tough, difficult, strenuous, but also edifying and remarkable. Jesus must have felt so loved by him and so safe with him, especially when he got older and heard stories about their flight to Egypt and his own birth in Bethlehem. From Joseph he would have learned patience, courage, leadership, and perseverance. Jesus would have seen how faithful and hard-working Joseph was when plying his trade ,and how kind and loving he was with his wife. It prepared him for his own mission of building a Church and being loving to his bride during his Passion.
 
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TK421 said:
From Joseph he would have learned patience, courage, leadership, and perseverance.
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Exactly,

Why would you think Joseph had nothing to teach Jesus?

Joseph was a good man, he had other children… maybe they were grown, maybe they werent but how he treated them would have taught Jesus a lot. He taught Him Hebrew, how to read, to write… how to build, how to love.

Everyone speaks of the love Jesus had for his mother, do you think He would have treated Joseph any differently?

I doubt very much Jesus ever said to Joseph, “You can’t tell me what to do you’re not my Father!” LOL.
 
annad347 said:
I doubt very much Jesus ever said to Joseph, “You can’t tell me what to do you’re not my Father!” LOL.
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And DNA tests didn’t exist. In Jewish custom and law, the husband of your mother was your father. The community looked at Jesus as the son of Joseph and Jesus would have done the same, even if Jesus also knew that he was the Son of God.
 
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thelibrarian said:
He was disobedient in that he stayed behind in the temple as a child,
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No, Christ never sinned.

A 12 year old male in 1st Century Palestine was not the child that 12 year olds are now. He was considered a man.
 
thelibrarian said:
He was disobedient in that he stayed behind in the temple as a child, but he was carrying out the will of his heavenly father
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That’s presumptuous. You’ve nothing to base that claim upon.
Yes… After a few days There was concern… which reveals different times…
His mother questioned Him… and His Answer satisfactorily answered her… .
 
Haha I made a typo? Chill out man.

Also that’s my entire point. Joseph could have known He was the Messiah and not known He was literally God, since those two things weren’t synonymous to the Jews then.
 
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Just as God ensured Jesus had the best mother that ever was, he also made sure Jesus had the best father. The Holy Family is, as a whole and in its several parts, the exemplar of and for families.

Was parenthood harsher at that time? Luke 11:11-13: “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” Jesus learned about good fathers from Joseph. I doubt parenthood at the time was inherently harsher; I’m sure it had more to do with the character of the parents.

Yes, Joseph knew Jesus was divine. Saints tell us that God placed a piece of his own heart into Joseph’s so that he could exercise the authority of a father over his own creator, and so that Jesus, King of the Universe, could obey him as a father. Imagine the humility and devotion necessary to withstand such a grace!!

If you want to learn more about our foster-father Joseph, patron of the Universal Church, a very good and engaging scholarly work is Edward Healy Thompson’s The Life and Glories of Saint Joseph. If you prefer something more personal and sentimental, The Life of Saint Joseph is a private revelation recorded by Maria Cecilia Baij.
 
nfinke said:
Do we have definite evidence that Joseph knew Jesus was Good? If he did I don’t see how that wouldn’t just be very discouraging as a father.
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Yes, Joseph Knew and had Evidence that Jesus was good. In the book of Luke, everything that the apostle wrote came directly from Mary,

“Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. 6 Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly.”

God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

Zechariah’s Song​

68 “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has come to his people and redeemed them.
69 He has raised up a horn[c] of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David
70 (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago).
But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.
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When the time came for the purification rites required by the Law of Moses, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord.

29 “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,
you may now dismiss[d] your servant in peace.
30 For my eyes have seen your salvation,
31 which you have prepared in the sight of all nations:
32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and the glory of your people Israel.”

33 The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him
 
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Next, and as both parents were concerned, they found Jesus (age 12) at the temple.

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“Every year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the Festival of the Passover. 42 When he was twelve years old, they went up to the festival, according to the custom. 43 After the festival was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. 44 Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. 45 When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him. 46 After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.”

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"On the Third Day"​

The three days, in this case, are apparently:
  • the first day spent journeying from Jerusalem,
  • a second day spend journeying back to Jerusalem,
  • and the third day (or part of a third day) searching for him in Jerusalem.
Again, note the foreshadowing: The three days echo the three days (or, more precisely, parts of three days) that Jesus spent in the tomb, during which Mary and the disciples were deprived of Jesus’ presence but then found him again “on the third day” (cf. Lk. 9:22).
 
Nothing Jesus did was disobedient to Joseph or to Mary.

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“St. Paul shows us that just as Adam’s disobedience, in which we had no personal part, was counted for us, so Jesus’ obedience, in which we likewise had no personal part, also counts for us. Sometimes we’re tempted to think we should each be given our own shot at obedience, that we could perhaps have done a better job than Adam. That could be dangerous, however. If we refuse to let another’s behavior count for us, what happens if, in our one moment of glory, when we must choose for or against God, we botch it like Adam did? If he could fail, so could we. If we refuse to let another’s behavior count for us, then Jesus’ obedience won’t help us at all. We are left with our own choices and no chance for redemption. God’s way is much better!”
*Scripture Speaks:* Christ in the Desert
 
When all is said and done wrt discussing St. Joseph,
let us never forget whom Joseph was forefather of:

Jesus, Son of God and Protector of Mary - mother of Jesus

_
 
How many angels can dance on the head of a pin…

We have the Biblical accounts of the Holy Family.

The Church has designated Joseph a saint.

Jesus, fully man, fully God, was tempted, but never sinned.

Seems to me this is all we need to understand the economy of salvation, and to use Joseph as a role model for all of us fathers out there. The rest is mere speculation, and superfluous.
 
Modern man should emulate him. The example of how to be a great dad and spouse.
 
OraLabora said:
Seems to me this is all we need to understand…to use Joseph as a role model for all of us fathers out there.
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I agree with this point as it’s stated, but I don’t think it’s enough to say Joseph was the best earthly father of all time. There’s very little about Joseph in the biblical account to suggest he was a better father than the average, other than the fact he’s described as a righteous man, as many biblical father’s are. You can definitely say he was never shown to be a bad father from scripture, but to give him the usual title of best father, you need to extrapolate from scripture and go into theology.

I also don’t think something being speculation should disqualify it for discussion.
 
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