Commentary on the Gospel of
Isn’t he the carpenter’s son?
A carpenter in Jesus’ time worked with wood and stone. Joseph would not only have constructed and sold wooden furnishings, but would also have replaced the thatched roofing of houses and built homes made of stone, plastering them with clay. Possibly Joseph, too, worked as a contractual carpenter in the majestic city of Sepphoris, the capital of Galilee, five kilometers away from Nazareth.
Eventually, Jesus apprenticed under Joseph. Eventually, after Joseph passed away, Jesus would have provided for his widowed mother Mary by laboring with his hands. St. Joseph the Worker, teach us the dignity of human labor.
