“And Joseph too went up from Galilee from the town of Nazareth to Judea, to the city of David that is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed who was with child.” (Luke: 2:4)

We know that Mary and Joseph were forced to make a trip to Bethlehem, Joseph's family's hometown, to participate in the Roman census. 

We are told little of what that experience was like for them. Mary, heavily pregnant, would have walked at least 20km each day,  perhaps riding on a donkey sometimes. Although it was possible to make the journey in four days, it is unlikely that they would have taken the dangerous direct route through Samaria. They would have had to travel more slowly due to Mary’s advanced pregnancy. The journey was more likely to have taken anything from a week to ten days. 

They may have had to wait to leave until the end of the rainy and cold winter season, even though that meant travelling close to Mary's due date. There were lots of dangers on the road, including wild animals and bandits who would rob travellers. They probably joined with other travellers or trade caravans for increased safety. Mary and Joseph would have brought with them water and provisions of bread, oil and perhaps dried fish,

Mary would have been aware that she could go into labour with this, her first child, at any stage. Perhaps not knowing who would be there to help her—maybe hoping against all odds that they would make it back to Nazareth in time for her to give birth there. Joseph had already proven his faith in accepting God’s assurance that he could take Mary as his wife. But this is a new couple – still finding their feet with one another. One wonders what their conversations were like as they walked the many hours together. Were they still shy and awkward with each other, or was their love deepening rapidly in the long hours together?

This story has grittiness: blisters, sore feet, and the bone-wearying tiredness of walking long distances in the final week of pregnancy. They do not know where they will stay when they arrive, and they will still have to make the long journey back home with a newborn. 

And yet there is a strong sense of trust in God in the face of the harsh realities and discomforts and in being unable to predict how things would unfold. 

Contemplating the journey of Mary and Joseph perhaps invites us to deeper trust even when the trip is arduous: to remember that the God we bear within is always with us. 

Gracious God, 
Give us strength on the journey,
That when we feel oppressed by the circumstances in which we find ourselves, 
Or exhausted by the long and arduous journeys we find we must make, 
That we may experience your
consoling and strengthening presence,
as we seek to respond with faithfulness. 
Amen