Come on, let us kill him and throw him into some well; we can say that a wild beast devoured him.

Genesis 37:20

Some years ago, one of my professors in philosophy explained the word excuse. He said the following: "an excuse seeks to extenuate, sometimes to remove the blame entirely from something which would otherwise be a fault. It does this in three ways: i} It can suggest that what is seen as a fault is not really a fault; ii} that though there has been a fault, the agent is not really blameworthy; iii} that though there has been a fault and though the agent is responsible, s/he is not really to blame because s/he has good reasons to do what s/he did". These words from my professor capture the human effort to evade responsibilities even when the act is deliberated.

The whole narrative looks like a coup and like most coups, a voice{s} of dissidence was raised. It is interesting to hear that both Reuben and Judah did not dissuade the others from the intended act; rather, they offered what they considered was less or non violent. But is there a limit to what envy and jealousy can make us do?

Joseph did not offend his brothers; his life was simply a pain to them. He had the affection of their father and above all, he was the man of dreams. These made him an unfit in his own house and his brothers sought to do what many persons would likely do: keep him silent. However, the ancient truth came to light. God writes straight with crooked lines. The decision to do away with him led Joseph to live out God's plan for his life. 

We can hold onto two lessons from the reading of today. First, we must be responsible for our actions, be they positive or negative. And secondly, no human life is a product of chance nor should we be considered as a mere consequence of the conjugal love between a husband and his wife. Every human life has a purpose; the choices that we make can affect the direction of our lives but ultimately, we are in the hands of God. In His hands, excuses do not count; love and responsibility do.    

A reflection written by Anthony Zabbey O.S.A., Priest of St Augustine's Hammersmith, London

Follow the Order of Saint Augustine (O.S.A.), Province of England and Scotland  

theaugustinians.org | Facebook | Twitter