Haha me too...its fun.
Joseph was to protect her, take her under his charge, thats the
norm. Joseph is an old man thats why he died fast haha.
An important historical document which supports the teaching of
Marys perpetual virginity is the Protoevangelium of James, which
was written probably less than sixty years after the conclusion of
Marys earthly life (around A.D. 120), when memories of her life
were still vivid in the minds of many.
However, due to considerations of ceremonial cleanliness, it was
eventually necessary for Mary, a consecrated "virgin of the Lord,"
to have a guardian or protector who would respect her vow of
virginity. Thus, according to the Protoevangelium, Joseph, an
elderly widower who already had children, was chosen to be her
spouse. (This would also explain why Joseph was apparently dead by
the time of Jesus adult ministry, since he does not appear during
it in the gospels, and since Mary is entrusted to John, rather than
to her husband Joseph, at the crucifixion).
According to the Protoevangelium, Joseph was required to regard
Marys vow of virginity with the utmost respect. The gravity of his
responsibility as the guardian of a virgin was indicated by the
fact that, when she was discovered to be with child, he had to
answer to the Temple authorities, who thought him guilty of
defiling a virgin of the Lord. Mary was also accused of having
forsaken the Lord by breaking her vow. Keeping this in mind, it is
an incredible insult to the Blessed Virgin to say that she broke
her vow by bearing children other than her Lord and God, who was
conceived through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Here are the quotes:
The Protoevangelium of James
"And behold, an angel of the Lord stood by [St. Anne], saying,
Anne! Anne! The Lord has heard your prayer, and you shall conceive
and shall bring forth, and your seed shall be spoken of in all the
world. And Anne said, As the Lord my God lives, if I beget either
male or female, I will bring it as a gift to the Lord my God, and
it shall minister to him in the holy things all the days of its
life. . . . And [from the time she was three] Mary was in the
temple of the Lord as if she were a dove that dwelt there"
(Protoevangelium of James 4, 7 [A.D. 120]).
"And when she was twelve years old there was held a council of
priests, saying, Behold, Mary has reached the age of twelve years
in the temple of the Lord. What then shall we do with her, lest
perchance she defile the sanctuary of the Lord? And they said to
the high priest, You stand by the altar of the Lord; go in and
pray concerning her, and whatever the Lord shall manifest to you,
that also will we do. . . . [A]nd he prayed concerning her, and
behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him saying, Zechariah!
Zechariah! Go out and assemble the widowers of the people and let
them bring each his rod, and to whomsoever the Lord shall show a
sign, his wife shall she be. . . . And Joseph [was chosen]. . . .
And the priest said to Joseph, You have been chosen by lot to take
into your keeping the Virgin of the Lord. But Joseph refused,
saying, I have children, and I am an old man, and she is a young
girl" (ibid., 89).
"And Annas the scribe came to him [Joseph] . . . and saw that Mary
was with child. And he ran away to the priest and said to him,
Joseph, whom you did vouch for, has committed a grievous crime.
And the priest said, How so? And he said, He has defiled the
virgin whom he received out of the temple of the Lord and has
married her by stealth" (ibid., 15).
"And the priest said, Mary, why have you done this? And why have
you brought your soul low and forgotten the Lord your God? . . .
And she wept bitterly saying, As the Lord my God lives, I am pure
before him, and know not man" (ibid.).
