Joe, King of Heaven?

Like Mary, Joe's dignity comes from his relationship to the Incarnate Word: Mary's dignity comes from being Jesus' mother; Joe's dignity comes from being Mary's spouse. This past Sunday, we celebrated the Feast of Christ the King of the Universe in the Roman Catholic Church. Many use this as the launch point for believing that Mary is Queen of Heaven and Earth. But what about Joe? Is he of royal dignity like Jesus and Mary?

Yes, he is "son of David," the great King of Israel (Matt. 1:20), but is there more? Let's take another look at the Old Testament Joseph. We all know the story: Joseph has dreams and special clothes and is sold as a slave into Egypt (Gen. 37), he goes to jail for being chaste (Gen. 39), he interprets dreams in jail (Gen. 40), and after being in jail for two years, he interprets the dreams of Pharaoh (Gen. 41). In gratitude for Joseph's response, Pharaoh says to him, "You shall be in charge of my household, and all my people will obey your command. Only in respect to the throne will I outrank you." (Gen. 41:40)

Does not the same happen with Joe? The Father says to him, "You shall be in charge of my household, and all my people will obey your command. Only in respect to the throne will I outrank you."

So, is Joe "King of Heaven"? No, but he's only a step below God - although, it is an infinite step between him and God.

"He made him lord over his household, ruler over all his possessions"

-Psalm 105:21