I have had many cherished memories of the Pasyon in Kawit, Cavite. When I was 7 or 8 years old, my late aunt used to tag me along to the kubol (chapel) in Barangay Wakas. Having been exposed to that pious practice, I began chanting by myself at the age of 9. Years went by that I was chanting side-by-side with my aunt. I continued to do so in Manila until I left for the UK.
Some cousins used to make fun of me because of being makamatanda (old fashioned), but I took to heart what my aunt said “Bokasyon mo iyan!” (That’s your vocation.) Sadly, there is no opportunity to hold a pabasa here in the UK.
I love the pabasa because it calls to mind the story of Jesus and other people who form part of Salvation History – Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Joseph, Mary, the apostles, Mary Magdalene, and even the Empress Helena (Sta Elena Emperatris). It’s good to remember what the Lord did for us from Creation to Crucifixion, from Resurrection to Pentecost, from the Founding of the Cross to the Parousia.
I am however uneasy with some stories in the Pasyon. Take for example these lines from the story of the Birth of Mary (“Ang pangananak ni Sta Ana kay Ginoong Sta Maria):
May isa ngang matanda na
Hosep ang pangalan niya,
anak sa tribu ni Huda,
kadugo't kadesendensia
ni David, bunying Propeta.
Ang ama niya't magulang
ay si Eli ang pangalan
matanda't mabuting asal,
loob ay lubhang timtiman
malinis sa kalinisan.
Dili iba at si Hosep
siyang tinangi ng langit
na maging esposong ibig,
ng Birheng Inang marikit
timtima't lubhang mabait.
Siya ngani ang hihirang
pinili sa karamihan
na doroon sa simbahan
bilang kaapu-apuhan
na Patriarka Abraham.
I always believe that St Joseph was a young man when he was married to the Virgin Mary. The depiction of him being an old man in a number of paintings and statues as well as in the Pasyon has been based on the notion that, being an old man, he would not have the sexual urge to touch his wife, that he would be more of a protector of her virginity. No pun intended, but with news of dirty old men being involved in rape and other related crimes, that notion has proved to be invalid. Besides, if Joseph were an old man he won’t be that effective in protecting and providing for his family. He won’t be able to withstand the journey to Bethlehem and to Egypt. He might turn out to be the one being looked after instead!
Pierre-Marie Dumont, Publisher of Magnificat, commented that under the inspiration of St Teresa of Avila ( a staunch devotee of St Joseph in Spain), “…the Spanish school portrays a young and active Joseph, while the other schools most frequently picture him as an insignificant old man. Affirming full faith in the virginity of the Mother of God, the Joseph of El Greco, of Velasquez, and of Zurbaran is a true husband, given by God to his spouse. He is also, to a certain degree, a true father …”
Luckily, the Philippines was a colony of Spain! That’s perhaps why most if not all statues of St Joseph portray him as a young man. Even the plays we have such as the Panunuluyan depict him the same way. It’s unfortunate that this wasn’t carried over in the Pasyon.
Another deplorable story in the Pasyon was on St Joseph’s death (“Ang Pagkamatay ni San Hosep):
Ng malapit nang mangaral
si Hesus sa katauhan
ibig ngang ipatanghal,
ang kaniyang kadiyosan
sa taong makasalanan.
Nguni't ang kasing esposo,
ama sa haka ng tao,
si San Hosep bagang Santo,
natanto rin nga totoo
ang sasapitin ng Berbo.
Kaya nga't nang di makita
ni Hosep ang madlang dusa
ni Hesus na iwi niya,
hiningi nang buong sinta
siya'y mamatay na una.
At hindi nga matitiis
niyong banal na si Hosep
na makita at masilip,
ang madlang hirap at sakit
ni Hesus na kasi't ibig.
Dito sa nasang magaling
ni San Hosep na butihin
agad namang sinunod din,
ng Diyos na maawain
ang kaniyang pita't hiling.
Yaon ang siyang mula na
ng pagkakasakit niya
kinalinga tuwi na,
ni Hesus at ni Maria
si Hosep na mapaninta.
These lines would simply undo the real St Joseph as presented in Sacred Scriptures: courageous, obedient, strong. Furthermore, they present a God who would just grant someone’s plea to bail out. This isn’t God! This is an ATM or a jukebox!
There are still some stories I’d like to tell you, but that’s all from me for now.
In closing, here’s some words of wisdom from St Josemaria Escriva, Founder of Opus Dei and another great devotee of St Joseph:
Joseph loved Jesus as a father loves his son and showed his love by giving him the best he had. Joseph, caring for the child as he had been commanded, made Jesus a craftsman, transmitting his own professional skill to him. So the neighbors of Nazareth will call Jesus both faber and fabri filius: the craftsman and the son of the craftsman. Jesus worked in Joseph’s workshop and by Joseph’s side. What must Joseph have been, how grace must have worked through him, that he should be able to fulfill this task of the human upbringing of the Son of God!
For Jesus must have resembled Joseph: in his way of working, in the features of his character, in his way of speaking. Jesus’ realism, his eye for detail, the way he sat at table and broke bread, his preference for using everyday situations to give doctrine – all this reflects his childhood and the influence of Joseph. (Christ is Passing By, 55)
Have a nice weekend!
Happy Mothers’ Day to all moms this Sunday! (We’re celebrating Mothers’ Day in the UK every 4th Sunday of Lent.)
A Blessed feast day of St Joseph this coming Monday!
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