The Solemnity of St. Joseph, husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

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Today is both the first day of the Spring and the Solemnity of St. Joseph. The coincidence of the two is atypical; St. Joseph's day typically falls on the nineteenth but is bumped forward every so often when the nineteenth is a Sunday. As a solemnity, it is the one occasion to trump the Lenten Friday rule. Except today's Monday.

March is a confounding month to me; everywhere I've lived it's exhibited all the pains of winter (with the expection of extremely short days), and seems to behave as a very abortive, jerking, stop-and-start approach to spring. Thinking forward to September, it's usually still warm enough to go swimming, or at least think about it on the Autumnal Equinox. Would any of you contemplate taking a dip outside these days?

A lot of that, of course, is just weather and physics. Water has excellent retention of heat, and by September the lakes and oceans are still oozing with energy. Whereas by now, their store is depleted. I realize this is an unfair comparison.

In August we celebrate the solemnity of Mary. The summer is still winding down but the sun is still a blaze of glory in the skies. Mary is associated with virginity that seems to supercede a sex act... it seems to touch on transcendence. And, of course, her literal role in the Bible suggests both intimacy with and proximity to God. So there is that.

I'm always struck by how analagous these two feasts run to their respective season's. What can be said of Joseph. While Mary is present throughout several of the gospels, Joseph is gone not long after the nativity, possibly (and some would say, implied) even dead. He was a carpenter, an honorable and pious man, and one who foreshadows the gospel message in his trust in and fidelity to Mary. And of course, we call him a carpenter, though it is just as reasonable to surmise that he might have been a skilled artisan, and thereby, a person of some means.

What else can be said about Joseph, though?

According to the Christian tradition, the promise of the gospel is not fulfilled until the moment of resurrection. Even so, it is explicitly discussed throughout the period of Christ's ministry. It is telling, then, to me that Joseph's feast day arrives at about the midpoint of Lent, in proximity to Spring but without really bearing witness to the fruits of the season. Those will come later, as will Easter.

The holiday has some rather bizarre and far flung traditions around the world. If you know someone named "Joseph," you can pinch them on the ear for their own good luck. Some areas consider it to be the end of the Carnival season (though they've already been fasting for several weeks) and go for one last parade. My favorite interpretation, however, is Filipino. A poor young girl and boy are decked out and seated at the table with the families' best servingware, and are led (literally spoon-to-mouth) by the elders of the family. I'm not exactly sure what this all signified; throughout most of the world the holiday seems to slip through the cracks.

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