Consecration to St. Joseph: The Wonders of Our Spiritual Father

by Donald H. Calloway

Third, some protest against the notion of Mary and St. Joseph having a virginal marriage because of the passage in the Gospel of Matthew that states that Joseph did not know his wife “until” Jesus was born. The passage reads: And Joseph rising up from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him, and took unto him his wife. And he knew her not until she brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name Jesus. — Mt 1:24-25 At first glance, the passage from Matthew does give the impression that Joseph engaged in marital relations with his wife after she gave birth to Jesus: “[H]e knew her not until she brought forth her firstborn son.” However, as numerous Scripture scholars, saints, popes, and theologians have stated over the centuries, the use of the word “until” in Scripture does not necessarily mean that a subsequent action will occur in the future. Saint Thomas Aquinas, the greatest theologian in the history of Christianity, tackled this specific issue in his Summa Theologiae. He wrote: “Until” does not necessarily have a determined temporal sense. When the psalmist says: “Our eyes are turned to the Lord until he have mercy on us” (Ps 122:2), this does not mean that, once we have obtained mercy from God, we shall take our eyes off him.7 There are several other passages in Scripture that attest that the use of the word “until” does not imply that an action will necessarily follow. 2 Sam 6:23: “And Michal the daughter of Saul had no child until the day of h...