A Bit Player

He was but a bit player,
or so the story has been told
a simple, pious man,
Father of God, in the world,
in the flesh.
Devoted to his safety,
to his training, his teaching
Able, in faith, to heed the angel’s call
to shoulder the shame, the jeers
to absolve the stain
to be true to the will of God
To trust his fate
to God, to bear witness, at the birth
to the mission of Jesus,
who would save

Matthew 1:18-25
Joseph, the father of Jesus