August 1
Joseph of Arimathea
art by Rev. Kirsten Kohr of Uhrichsville, Ohio Merciful God, whose servant Joseph of Arimathea with reverence and godly fear prepared the body of our Lord and Savior for burial and laid it in his own tomb: Grant to us, your faithful people, grace and courage to love and serve Jesus with sincere devotion all the days of our life; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Joseph of Arimathea was a secret disciple of our Lord whose intervention with Pilate ensured a burial for Jesus’ crucified body. After the Crucifixion, when many of Jesus’ disciples went into hiding for fear of the authorities, Joseph courageously came forward to ask Pilate’s permission to remove Jesus’ body from the cross in accordance with pious Jewish practice, namely, to provide the deceased with a timely and proper burial. Moreover, Joseph freely offered his own newly dug tomb for Jesus, preventing further desecration by humans or animals.
Although we know nothing of his further role in the early Christian movement, legends developed in later centuries about Joseph’s possible subsequent leadership, including medieval traditions connecting him to Glastonbury in Britain. However, Joseph’s remembrance depends primarily upon the gospel narratives of Jesus’ burial, attesting to his devotion, his generous compassion, and his brave willingness to take action on behalf of another when such action mattered.
Excerpted directly from “Lesser Feasts and Fasts 2022,” p. 340-341.
Lessons and PsalmProverbs 4:10-18
Psalm 16:5-11
Luke 23:50-56
Preface of a Saint (1)
