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"In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, so be it." Well, dear brothers, today we're going to see Joseph's magnificent example of forgiveness to his brothers. But, since it's not possible to forgive someone who has no contrition, we're going to see how Joseph works to give them contrition for their fault, how he even already offers them a beginning of atonement, and that in order to be able to forgive them. And the reason I'm going to devote an entire oath to this question, to this magnificent example, is because we have some very misconceived ideas about it. We often confuse "love of enemies", since Christ asked us to love not only our friends, but also our enemies. Love of enemies" is often confused with "forgiveness". And we often think that, in the name of love of enemies, Christ asks us to forgive even those who don't ask for our forgiveness. But if we were to think for two minutes, we'd realize that God doesn't forgive those who don't ask for forgiveness. Not only must the sinner ask forgiveness in order to be forgiven by God, but he must also have contrition. A sinner who asks for forgiveness without contrition, with the firm intention of doing so, would not be forgiven by God. So what does love of enemies consist in? There are two ways of loving someone. Firstly, the love of friendship, with someone who is good, and with whom we have qualities in common. As far as enemies are concerned, this is obviously not the love of friendship, because you can't have friendship for an enemy. It's contradictory. It is therefore necessarily the love of benevolence. What is the good we should want from our enemy? Obviously, it's to bring him into God's love, to convert him. This love is absolutely necessary. It goes hand in hand with charity, with the love of God. It is inseparable from it. It's impossible to love God and not want the sinner to convert. But we have to go further. When someone is in need, it's our obligation to meet that need if no one else can do it for us. If someone else can do it for us, fine, we don't have an obligation. But when someone is in need, as St Thomas says, when someone is in need and we are the only ones to provide for that need, then charity obliges us to provide. So we can see that the charity that obliges us to love our enemies obliges us to work for their salvation. To do this - and this is what Joseph is going to do, and this is what our Lord is doing towards us - to work for their salvation, we must work so that they obtain contrition for their fault and make reparation for it. This is called fraternal correction.


 And it's one of the works of spiritual mercy. Forgive offenses. But you'll have noticed that forgiving offenses is a work of spiritual mercy that follows the first works of spiritual mercy, namely teaching the truth, giving good advice and correcting sinners. The third work of spiritual mercy is to correct sinners. And when the sinner is corrected, we can then forgive him. And to finish with the theory before moving on to the practical application at Joseph's house, the love of enemies which obliges us to work for their conversion sometimes obliges us to do other, lesser benefits than the salvation of the soul, in order to obtain the salvation of the soul. For example, one of our faithful in Alsace told me that a Protestant family had fallen on hard times, and unfortunately the Protestant pastor didn't offer them any help. So it was the Catholics, and in particular the Catholic priest from Péroisse, who came to the Protestants' rescue. And with great delicacy, he didn't work openly to convert them, which would have been premature, and which might have appeared self-serving in their eyes, but contented himself with providing for their needs. And it was only after some time that these people, understanding the attitude of the Catholic priest and comparing it with the attitude of the Protestant pastor, recognized that this benevolence of the priest came from his charity, that is, from the love of God, that is, from Christ crucified, that is, also from the grace that Christ communicates to his friends, and it was then that they decided to convert and become Catholics. So we have Joseph, who is a figure of Christ; there is obviously a great resemblance between Joseph and Christ, who was put into slavery by God's providence for the salvation of his brothers, and of the Egyptians too. This he would later declare openly.


 "Don't worry, everything that has happened to me has happened for your salvation." Just as Christ made himself a slave, but I told you about that last time, made himself a slave and offered his life for our salvation. Joseph, however, is waiting for a providential opportunity. He could certainly have gone to Palestine to meet his brothers, but that would have been a big mistake, because you can't convert by force, and you can't forgive someone who doesn't ask for forgiveness, as I've just explained to you. So Joseph, inspired by the Holy Ghost, waits for providence. Providence offers him this opportunity, as his brothers come to Egypt to buy grain because of the famine. He recognizes them, but they don't recognize him. Why don't they recognize him? It doesn't matter, either because they have no idea that the viceroy of Egypt could be their brother, or because Joseph is now dressed in Egyptian fashion, or because the Holy Ghost won't allow them to recognize him. And when Joseph sees his brothers, of course, his insides are moved. But he's careful not to indulge in sentimentality, which would spoil everything, because it wouldn't lead to contrition, nor to forgiveness, nor to reparation. And so Joseph treats them harshly. Just as our Lord Jesus Christ does when he tests us. So Joseph accuses his brothers of being spies. How can you defend yourself against such an accusation, made by the viceroy of a country? We are not spies. Prove it. But before being harsh with them, before punishing them, he wants to know what their feelings are, and in particular what has become of Benjamin, the youngest, who is Joseph's younger brother, born of Rachel like him.



Could it be that his brothers have put a curse on him, just as they did on Joseph? And we could fear it, since the brothers have come, except for Benjamin. Benjamin is his father's great consolation after the loss of Joseph, but Joseph wants proof of this. So he gets his way by making them talk. And his brothers tell him, "But no, we're honest shepherds, we're twelve brothers, one is dead, and then there's another who's near our father." "Ah," said Joseph, "well that's proof enough that you're spies. If you were honest, all eleven of you would have come. So you're going to bring Benjamin to me, and then when I've seen him, then at that point you can ask me for wheat." And in doing so, he decides to put them in prison. The poor people expect to be put in prison "sinédillés" as they say, i.e. without a deadline. But after three days, Joseph feels that he has frightened them enough, and tells them, "Listen, you're going to go home to your father, you're going to bring your Benjamin back to me, but I'm keeping six meons here, in prison, I'm keeping one, because I need to have a hostage quite simply." He gives the order to fill the sacks with wheat, and he also gives the order to put back into the sacks the money they had given in payment for the wheat. Joseph's brothers arrive at Jacob's house, and tell him everything that happened. It's absolutely extraordinary; I've rarely seen a story so simple, so understandable, by children, and yet so noble. You'd think you were there, you'd really feel as if you were in Jacob's waiting room, hearing his sons speak to him. He tells them everything that's happened, that Benjamin must be brought back, and then they're stunned to find that in the ten bags, no, sorry, in the nine bags, is the money. Jacob tells them, "There's no way I'm parting with Benjamin, you're staying here." Yes, but the famine continues. The sons say to Jacob, "It's time we went and got some grain." Jacob replies, "No way, I told you, Benjamin will not leave me." And then we get to a stage where it's no longer famine, there's nothing left to eat, and the brothers say to Jacob, "Look, we've got to go." "Fine," he says, "but without Benjamin." No, that's not possible, you know very well it's going to be a failure. The lord of this land, the viceroy, whom they constantly call Lord, the lord of this land told us we couldn't appear before him unless we brought our brother. Jacob says, "Look, I've lost Joseph, I've lost Simeon, I'm not going to lose Benjamin now too." In the end, he had to give in.


So our nine brothers arrive in Egypt, bringing money, but twice as much, because they're bringing the money they found in the sacks. Jacob tells them, "Return this money that is not yours, and then in addition you will bring this lord the richest gifts you could offer them." There are certainly spices and other precious things. When they arrive in Egypt, they are obviously not received directly by the viceroy. They're received by a steward, and immediately they say, "Ah, Lord, we're bringing back the money, because last time, we don't know what happened, but we found the money in the sacks. So we're coming to buy back wheat and we're going to pay, but we're returning the money from the first time." What I forgot to tell you is that, and this is very important, during the first trial, when Joseph accuses them of being spies, and then puts them in prison, and then finally keeps Simeon in prison, they say among themselves, "It's just that we're suffering all this, because we sinned against our brother, and, seeing the anguish of his soul, when he implored us, we didn't listen to him. That is why we have fallen into this affliction." And Reuben adds, "I told you, don't commit such a great crime against this child. You didn't listen to me.


It's his blood now that God is asking of us again." And he didn't know Joseph understood them, because Joseph had taken care to speak with them through an interpreter. Conscience deadens them, because for years and years they've seen the affliction of Jacob, their father, and although he still hasn't confessed their crime, let alone asked for forgiveness, they do see their father's affliction, and they can't forget what they've done to their brother Joseph. We see that Joseph's treatment has been effective, since Judas has vouched for his brother Benjamin to his father, and he offers to suffer punishment from his father, if ever, by misfortune, he does not bring Benjamin back. I'm cutting this short, because I'm approaching the twenty minutes I've set myself. Joseph is very happy to see Benjamin, he frees Simeon, he gives everyone wheat, but he gives the order to put a precious cup in Benjamin's sack of wheat, a precious cup that is personal to him and which he holds dear. His brothers leave, and as soon as they've gone, Joseph sends his steward after them, accusing them of theft. The others say, no, we didn't steal, search us, you'll see, if you find a cup in our belongings, well, the guilty party, let him be punished by death. And the intendant says, no, that's enough, he'll be my slave. The steward starts with the eldest, he finds nothing, the next, he arrives at Benjamin's bag and there, they find the cup. So everyone returns to Egypt to try and clear their names. It's not our fault, we had nothing to do with it. Joseph had treated them very well the second time, he had made a feast for them, they had been allowed to eat in his presence, so they're convinced that there's a misunderstanding here and that we'll be able to clear it up. Even so, they are very worried. Joseph feels that the ordeal is now sufficient, and makes himself known.



Because he has seen their good disposition, because he has seen their love for their father, their respect for their father. It may still be imperfect contrition, but all it takes is a tiny nudge for it to become perfect contrition. Joseph gives this nudge. Judas speaks to him. What shall we say to my Lord? What shall we say? What can we present to him, with what stamp of justice, in our defense? God has found the iniquity of your servants. We are all my Lord's slaves, we and the one in whose house the cup was found. Now they realize that God is testing them, they accept the punishment. Joseph replied with great kindness, "God forbid that I should do this. Let the one who took my cup be my slave, and as for you, go free and find your father. Judas then approached Joseph more closely and said, "My Lord, please allow your servant to speak to you. We have a father who is old and a younger brother whom he had in his old age, whose brother who was born of the same mother died, that is Joseph. This is the only one left, and my father loves him dearly. You say to your servants, "Bring him to me." We did. He makes a slightly longer plea, which I'll cut short. He concludes, "If I present myself to my father and the child is not there, as his life depends on that of his son, when he sees that he is not with us, he will die." And we, your servants, will burden his old age with a pain that will lead him to the grave. So let me rather be your slave, for I have vouched for this child and answered to my father. I will remain your slave and serve in the child's place, so that he may return to his brothers.



 For I cannot return to my father without the child with us, lest I myself witness the extreme affliction that will befall our father. At this point, Joseph realizes that his brothers' hearts have changed completely, and Judas makes amends. Just because he won't be a slave doesn't mean he won't be one. He sold Joseph into slavery, and now he offers to be a slave to save Joseph's little brother. So Joseph makes himself known: "I am Joseph, your brother, whom you sold to be taken to Egypt. Do not be afraid or grieve that you sold me to be brought to this country. For God sent me to Egypt before you for your salvation." And that's extraordinary, because if anyone should be distressed, it's Joseph. And Joseph turns the tables, he says, "Do not grieve that you have sold me." Joseph gives orders for his brothers to return to Palestine. He gives them wagons to bring back their father. He tells them to bring back the whole family, wives and children. He will bless them. It's a resurrection for Jacob. When everyone arrives, Jacob sends word to Joseph. He has a chariot harnessed. He rushes to meet his father. Then he introduces the whole family to Pharaoh. And Pharaoh, full of gratitude for his viceroy, told him to settle his family in the most beautiful land in Egypt. Joseph's forgiveness could not have been so complete and perfect if he had not first worked to turn the hearts of his brothers around, and, as Scripture says, to replace their hearts of stone with hearts of flesh. This is what our Lord is doing with us, and this is what the Blessed Virgin Mary, particularly at Fatima, asks us to do with our neighbor, in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, so be it.