Saint Joseph the Great!

The following comes from Bible Study for Catholics:

Consider this for a second: out of every single man on the planet and, indeed, in human history…God chose Joseph to teach Jesus what it meant to be a man. God could have chosen a famous teacher or an earthly king or a fearsome military leader to raise Jesus. He didn’t. God chose a humble carpenter from a town in the middle of nowhere. Joseph of Nazareth would not have had a verified account on Twitter. He wouldn’t have had many followers on Instagram. He was a no name, a “nobody” in the eyes of the world, but in the eyes of heaven, St. Joseph was somebody very, very special.

The phrase “Abba” appears only three times in Sacred Scripture (Mark 14:36; Romans 8:15; and Galatians 4:6). Of course, the first time Christ uttered the word “Abba” on this earth, he was likely looking into the eyes of St. Joseph, which is a point that is worthy of mention. God the Father could have chosen to allow the Blessed Virgin to live and work as a single mother. He could have given her a couple of extra guardian angels or sent Elizabeth to care for her. He is the God who created the giraffe, the coffee bean, and cumulus clouds. He does not suffer from a lack of creativity or specificity in his providence, design, or problem solving.

Some suggest that God only had St. Joseph as part of the Holy Family because of cultural expectations, but that is dangerously presumptuous. This is a God who constantly laughs (Psalm 2:4) in the face of social norms. St. Joseph is not window-dressing in the home of the Holy Family; he is nothing less than one of the greatest men to ever walk the planet. A model of manhood and virtue, God the Father specifically called and designed Joseph to be the living embodiment of manhood and fatherhood to the second Person of the Holy Trinity during his most formative years. In St. Joseph, then, we’re given a glimpse into the heart of God the Father. It would be completely illogical to think, after all the trouble of the incarnation that he would fail to choose a man who reflected his divine image of paternal love with the highest possible measure of human faithfulness.

Scripture reveals to us that St. Joseph’s love for Mary was outdone only by his love for the Father (Matthew 1:19). Only his obedience and belief in the sanctity of the law could lead him to divorce Mary, but his love for her could not allow for harm to come to her, even if he was disgraced in the process. It sounds a lot like the love of God the Father, doesn’t it? His vow to the covenant couldn’t allow him to just dismiss our sin. His great love could not allow for him to dismiss us, even if he was disgraced in the process (Philippians 2:8; Hebrews 12:2).

How heroic the love of God the Father as embodied in Christ’s earthly abba, St. Joseph! How many mornings did he rise with the Egyptian sun, an alien in a foreign land, armed only with a tool belt, venturing into a hostile culture seeking enough employment to keep food on the Holy Family’s humble dinner table? How disciplined a man to have undoubtedly taught the God of the universe to invoke Scripture each day by praying the sacred Shema (the Jewish daily prayers). Echoes of Joseph’s and Mary’s voices can be heard in Christ’s responses to the devil in the wilderness, for his response to the first temptation is quoting the Shema he learned at the feet of his parents.

How focused and detail oriented Joseph must have been to make a living as a carpenter, in which the work of your hands points straight back to the craftsmanship of its creator. Could there have been a more perfect metaphor for the earthly father of God? Consider the humility he demonstrated throughout the unique circumstances of Mary’s pregnancy. Ponder his obedience in traveling almost one hundred miles with a wife in her third trimester. Contemplate the respect for others’ dignity and heritage that Christ undoubtedly learned from his parents (Matthew 2:10-12; John 4:30-42; Matthew 15:24-28). St. Joseph revealed the Father to Christ by who he was each day, not merely in what he provided for the family.

St. Joseph, pray for us!

Pope Francis and the Sleeping St. Joseph

"I have a great love for St. Joseph, because he is a man of silence and strength.  On my table I have an image of St. Joseph sleeping.  Even when asleep, he is taking care of the Church."  Pope Francis

The Glorious Saint Joseph

Pope Francis: Saint Joseph and the dignity of labor

(Vatican Radio) To mark International Labour Day which coincides with the Feast day of Saint Joseph the worker, Veronica Scarisbrick takes a look at the special devotion Pope Francis has for this Saint. As well as focus briefly on one of the social issues central to his thinking: the dignity of labour.

Let’s begin with his devotion to Saint Joseph as there’s quite a list of things that connect Pope Francis to this saint. Among them the choice of the date for the beginning of his pontificate the 19th of March, Saint Joseph’s feast day, and the choice of the nard flower symbolic of this saint on his coat of arms. Then in July 2013 his decision to consecrate Vatican City State not just to Saint Michael, as had been previously planned, but to Saint Joseph as well. And on a more personal note his admission to cherishing a wooden statue representing a dormant Saint Joseph, dressed in gold trimmed dark green and red garments according to Hispanic iconography, by which he places prayer requests. Simply because as he mentioned when he confided to us this personal gesture: “ He’s a carpenter and he gets the job done, even though he sometimes makes you wait”.

As for what links Pope Francis to Saint Joseph, International Labour Day and workers why not shine the spotlight on his words the 1st of May 2013, so the very first year of his pontificate, during his weekly general audience. Words which focus precisely on work and the figure of Saint Joseph. In a special way on the role played by Joseph as the legal father who teaches his son his skills as a carpenter in the workshop in Nazareth on a daily basis and shares with him, the efforts, the commitment, the satisfactions and problems that come with the job.

On this occasion Pope Francis goes on to remind us of the dignity and importance of work. The Book of Genesis, he says, tells us that God created man and woman entrusting them with the task of filling the earth and subduing it, which does not mean exploiting it, but nurturing and protecting it, caring for it through their work: “Work is part of God's loving plan, we are called to cultivate and care for all the goods of creation and in this way participate in the work of creation! Work is fundamental to the dignity of a person...it gives you the ability to maintain yourself, your family, to contribute to the growth of your nation. And here I think of the difficulties which, in various countries, today afflicts the world of work and business; I think of how many, and not just young people, are unemployed, many times due to a purely economic conception of society, which seeks selfish profit, beyond the parameters of social justice. I wish to extend an invitation to solidarity to everyone, and I would like to encourage those in public office to make every effort to give new impetus to employment, this means caring for the dignity of the person, but above all I'd like to say do not lose hope; St. Joseph also experienced moments of difficulty, but he never lost faith and was able to overcome them, in the certainty that God never abandons us.And then I would like to speak especially to you young people: be committed to your daily duties, your study, your work, to relationships of friendship, to helping towards others; your future also depends on how you live these precious years of your life. Do not be afraid of commitment, of sacrifice and do not look with fear towards the future; keep your hope alive: there is always a light on the horizon".

But while Pope Francis on this occasion shares with us words of encouragemen as we've just noticed he also chooses to highlight some of the evils of society in the area of work and denounces once again, the practice some companies have of adopting policies that favour profit over human dignity or even human life. And then uses an image to express how fundamental work is to the dignity of the person:"... work to use an image ‘anoints’ with dignity, fills us with dignity, makes us similar to God who has worked and still works, who also acts”.

One last word perhaps: let’s hope the prayer requests that Pope Francis places by the reclining and dormant figure of Saint Joseph are eventually answered…As he once assured us, they always are!

A Prayer to St. Joseph the Worker

O Glorious St. Joseph, model of all those who are devoted to labor, obtain for me the grace to work conscientiously, putting the call of duty above my natural inclinations, to work with gratitude and joy, in a spirit of penance for the remission of my sins, considering it an honor to employ and develop by means of labor the gifts received from God, to work with order, peace, moderation and patience, without ever shrinking from weariness and difficulties, to work above all with purity of intention and detachment from self, having always death before my eyes and the account that I must render of time lost, of talents wasted, of good omitted, of vain complacency in success, so fatal to the work of God.

All for Jesus, all through Mary, all after thine example, O Patriarch, St. Joseph. Such shall be my watch-word in life and in death.

– Composed by St. Pius X

Hat tip to Deacon Greg!

Saint Joseph: A Hidden Life

The Apparition of St. Joseph in Cotignac, France

The following comes from the St. Joseph Sanctuary site:

It promised to be a hot day. A young shepherd of Cotignac, Gaspard Ricard aged 22 years, had herded his sheep to the east side of the Bessillon. At about 1 o'clock in the afternoon the heat was stifling. Very thirsty, he lay on the rocky ground when suddenly a tall man stood next to him and pointed to a rock saying : "Ie'u sie'u Jouse; enevo-lou e be'uras" that is to say " I am Joseph; lift it and you will drink". 

The rock was heavy - it would take about eight men to move it, how could Gaspard move it? But the venerable old man, according to the accounts of the day, reiterated his instruction. The shepherd obeyed and, moving the rock, found fresh water beginning to flow. Immediately he drank eagerly. When he stood up, he found the man had gone. Without waiting he went and took the news to the village and the curious began to arrive. Three hours after the event, in a place known to have no water, an abundant source was flowing.

St. Joseph brought to light in the Church and in France. : "That's it! Nothing simpler, nothing poorer than this apparition?. like the Gospel", commented Mgr. Gilles Barthe, in his pastoral letter of 14th February 1971. Water is the sign, so essential in our faith, of our regeneration and of the new life risen for us in Christ's Easter. Here is brought to light St. Joseph's role as a powerful intercessor" 

St Joseph united with the Virgin Mary in the eternal plan of Divine Providence, which God wants associated with his wife in the heart and prayers of Christians, especially in the life of families. 

The facts are duly attested by abundant sources which have been well preserved. One thing which happened in the months following the apparition is remarkable: Once again, the Consuls of Cotignac as politicians and as responsible Christians believed in the apparition and soon made arrangements so that the pilgrimages could be coped with and at the same time giving due respect to the appropriate responsibilities and competence of the church officials in the spiritual domain (services, thanksgiving etc.). 

Things happened fast. At the meeting of the Municipal Council on 25th July, St. Joseph's source was discussed, the water of which has many qualities and performs many works. As from all over the province people come to take water to bathe, drink and cure where there are sick or infirm. This was causing disorder. The construction of a Chapel was decided. A charity was formed to pay for it. Begun the 9th August it was completed the following October. Soon too small, in 1661 a much larger church was started in the style of the period. It is the same St. Joseph's Sanctuary, consecrated in 1663, that you can see today. 

But at the time the big question was who, secular priests or religious order, was going to be in charge of St. Joseph's Chapel. The population of Cotignac and its elected representatives wanted the Oratorian fathers of Our Lady of Graces and the Bishop of Frejus finally agreed. So it was right up to the Revolution.

Extraordinary Signs : In 1662, in his written account of his visit, Father Allard of the Oratory spoke of the year 1661 : 

"The fathers (of Our Lady of Graces) have assured me that there have been 52 processions between Easter and Pentecost, and that there were 6000 people within the octave of the latter feast. The waters of St. Joseph bring miracles. Since I returned, a man whom we know from Avignon, born lame, went to the spring and came back cured , having left his crutches there. Everyone drinks and carries away the water." 

He adds that the fathers had constructed a 6 bedroom building at St. Joseph, and they are overwhelmed. They need reinforcements. The Pope Alexander VII gave his benediction to the Confraternity which soon established itself under the name of Confraternity of the Holy Family or Jesus Mary and Joseph. 

All this shows the popularity achieved by the devoutness of St. Joseph. Since 1661 on his feast day the 19th March, huge crowds arrived. It was in that year that Louis XIV decreed that day to be a holiday. Soon the feast of St. Joseph was kept in all the French dioceses (which the Holy Father had been asking for the past 40 years) and especially in Provence. Churches appeared which were consecrated to St. Joseph and, in nearly all the others, an altar was dedicated to he whom the Church would in 1871 proclaim its universal protector. The St. Joseph source at the foot of the Sanctuary has never dried up, it is still visible lower down than the sanctuary on the side. Neither have the graces which it would be impossible to list say the Benedictine Sisters, who have made this their privileged abode since 1977 when they returned from Algeria. To all those who pray with faith, St. Joseph replies with a father's heart. He brings back the hearts of children to their parents, protects the unborn child, reconciles feuding brothers, and restores the will to live, say the Benedictines, who are often the confidants of graces obtained and these are often regarding material necessities: to live one must have food and a roof over ones head... 

After his pilgrimage to Cotignac and the apparition of St. Joseph, Louis XIV could hardly do less than to consecrate France and himself to St. Joseph. (These good Christian dispositions hardly survived the death of his mother, Anne of Austria).  

The Loud Silence of St. Joseph

The following comes from Fr. Steve Grunow at Word on Fire:

"We can have recourse to many saints as our intercessors, but go especially to Joseph..." 
- St. Teresa of Avila

Today the Church celebrates the solemnity of Saint Joseph, the husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the guardian of the Christ-child.

The Gospels are very clear that Joseph is not the father of the Lord Jesus.  The child born of the Virgin Mary is God and has no earthly father.  The body of Christ's human nature is created by what the scriptures describe as "the power of the Holy Spirit."  If this explanation confounds us, we are rightly confounded.  Christ is like us inasmuch as shares with us a human nature and lives a real human life. And yet, Christ is unlike us inasmuch as he is the singular instance in which a divine nature and a human nature share communion in a divine person.

Simply expressed, Christ is God and man.  It is because of Christ's willingness to accept a human nature with all its limitations that we are able to participate in his divine nature.  This participation, a gift given to us by Christ, is the most profound mystery of the Faith.

The mind can apprehend this mysterious revelation, even appreciate the "why" of it, but cannot fully understand the "how" of it all.

We can imagine that Joseph himself did not fully understand the circumstances surrounding Christ's conception and birth, but he was able to love what he did not fully understand. It is in this love that both his faith and his sanctity are revealed.

The Scriptures for today's solemnity are redolent of the Messianic expectations of Israel by which is meant the passionate belief professed by the descendents of Abraham that God would raise up from one of their own people a Savior who would manifest in word and deed the power of God.  The revelation of the Messiah would change Israel and the world forever.

The first scripture is a small section from the Second Book of Samuel that presents the prophet Nathan speaking to King David about his future heir.  David will have a son who will accomplish something that David will not.  What will the son of David do?  Build the Lord God a magnificent temple.

King David's son, Solomon, would accomplish this feat and would do so with such glory that generations after its destruction, his temple is still remembered as one of the most glorious of all human artistic achievements.  However, the Church does not present this scripture from Second Samuel today so that we can remember Solomon, son of David, but Jesus, the Son of David!

Jesus, the Son of David, whose ancestry is traced back to Israel's royal family through Joseph, is King David's rightful heir.  Christ bears the legacy of Israel's kingship and he build a temple.  But the temple Christ builds is greater than Solomon's.  How so?  Because the temple of the Lord Jesus is the Body he reveals in the Incarnation.  God reveals himself in the human nature of Christ in a way that is likened to how the divine presence fills the sanctuary of Solomon's temple with glory. 

The second scripture for today presents an excerpt from St. Paul's magnificent letter to the Romans.  The Letter to the Romans is St. Paul's "magnum opus", his crowning literary achievement.  The letter reads as an extended argument that the Apostle to the Gentiles is making on behalf of his conviction that the extraordinary revelation of Christ has had an extraordinary effect on Israel.  Israel has been transformed as a result of Christ's revelation, and the Letter to the Romans is describing what Israel once was, is now, and will be in the future because of the Lord Jesus.

This particular scripture from Romans references Abraham, whose great story is told in the Old Testament Book of Genesis.  Abraham is the founding patriarch of God's chosen people, a people who will take their name from Abraham's grandson, who was called Jacob or Israel.  St. Paul cites the promise God made to Abraham that he would have limitless descendents who would all manifest the faith Abraham to the world. 

It is St. Paul's conviction that it is Christ who delivers this promise, transforming Israel so that its numbers can truly be limitless and providing the means by which the God of Abraham would be known by the whole world.  How?  St. Paul sees all this happening in the Church, which is Israel transformed.  Christ has enabled the whole world to become, through the Church, descendents of Abraham and followers of the one, true God.

The Church gives the priest the option of choosing one of two Gospel passages for today.

One of these choices, from the Gospel of Luke, describes a curious event in which Joseph and the Virgin Mary lose the Christ child, only to find him in the temple of Jerusalem. 

This particular Gospel hearkens to the theme of the reading for today from Second Samuel with its allusion to the temple.  Luke is comparing and contrasting the old and new temples- one built of stones and culture in the city of Jerusalem and the other built of flesh and divinity in the Body of Christ.  His message?  The true meaning and purpose of the old sanctuary can only be fully appreciated in relation to the new sanctuary. The God whom we seek can only be found in the temple of Christ's Body.

The other Gospel for today is an excerpt from the Gospel of Matthew.  Thjs scripture makes it clear that the child born of the Virgin Mary is not the son of Joseph, or of any other man for that matter, but the Son of God.  In this respect, the Gospel of Matthew is not just hinting at Christ's true identity, but he is, in the opening of his Gospel, revealing Christ's identity explicitly.  Who is this Jesus?  He is God, and he has come for a particular purpose: "to save his people from their sins."

The rest of the Gospel of Matthew will demonstrate how this salvation from sin actually happens, but what Matthew wants us to know from the beginning is that it is God who is acting to reveal himself in Christ.  The Gospel of Matthew, indeed all four Gospels, are telling us that God has revealed himself in Jesus of Nazareth, who appeared to be the son of Joseph, but who is in fact the God of Israel himself.

I have now told you a great deal about the Lord Jesus and very little about Saint Joseph, which might strike you as odd given that today is his great solemnity.

However, my inability to say all that much about Saint Joseph follows a lead from the Scriptures, which are mostly silent in regards to details about him.  After the story of Christ's birth, Saint Joseph seems to disappear from the narrative of Christ's life as it is recorded in the Gospels. Generations subsequent to the writers of the Gospels treasured many pious legends about Saint Joseph, and the Church assures us that he remains an actor in the life of the Church to this very day, but in terms of personal details, anecdotes, true life stories, there is silence.

Perhaps the silence of Saint Joseph is his most profound witness.

Saints are not celebrities, who leverage every detail about their lives as a means to be known and recognized.  A saint is someone who in their desire to be like Christ is able and willing to disappear into the mission God gives to them.  For some saints, this mission brings with it a great deal of attention.  But for most saints, the life of grace involves a much lower profile and a death to self which requires an immersion into the most ordinary of circumstances. These circumstances are accepted by the saint because they know that it is precisely in the experience of what is apparently ordinary that God is accomplishing extraordinary things. 

Therefore, it is all of us, who right now find ourselves immersed in the mission to be the unnoticed saints of ordinary circumstances, who know that the silence of Saint Joseph speaks louder than any words.

The Power of the St. Joseph Novena

The following comes from Catholic Exchange:

When you ask any good father what he wants for his birthday, you’re likely to get a dismissive wave and perhaps a request for a beer and some time with his kids. Though I don’t have any kids of my own, this is the regular pattern I constantly observe with my dad and plenty of other dads out there. It’s not that they don’t deserve a big celebration, but more that seeing their kids doing well is all they ever needed.

St. Joseph, the foster father of Our Lord and a model for all fathers has a sort of “birthday” coming up on March 19th when we celebrate The Solemnity of St. Joseph, also popularly known as St. Joseph’s Day. In Boston’s North End and throughout many Italian-American communities it takes on the feeling of a big party with parades, processions, and other kinds of celebrations. These particular celebrations stem from giving thanks to St. Joseph’s intercession for avoiding a famine in Sicily and they are a testament to his powerful intercession.

While Joseph doesn’t say a lot in the Bible, he is rightly called the Patron of the Universal Church for his life, love and protection of both Mary and Our Lord. Pope Leo XIII, in observing how Joseph acted as a husband and father, reflected on this great saint:

The Blessed Patriarch looks upon the multitude of Christians who make up the Church as confided specially to his trust – this limitless family spread over the earth, over which, because he is the spouse of Mary and the Father of Jesus Christ he holds, as it were, a paternal authority. It is, then, natural and worthy that as the Blessed Joseph ministered to all the needs of the family at Nazareth and girt it about with his protection, he should now cover with the cloak of his heavenly patronage and defend the Church of Jesus Christ.

With his solemnity quickly approaching, it is customary to being to pray the St. Joseph Novena beginning on March 10th, which happens to be tomorrow. This powerful prayer ranks right up there with the St. Jude novena in answering some seemingly unanswerable prayers. In my own life, I’ve seen it at work.

Read the rest here.

Pope Francis: St. Joseph, model for those who have educational roles in Church and in society

Vatican City ( AsiaNews) St. Joseph, whose "feast" we celebrate today, is the "model" for all those who have an educational role in society and in the Church. Pope Francis dedicated his catechesis during the general audience today to the figure of the patron of the universal Church, one year to the day after the mass with which he began his pontificate. And as he said on that occasion, he reiterated today, that "Joseph greatest characteristic was his being a guardian, his great mission is to be a guardian". "Saint Joseph - he added greeting the faithful in Arabic - is the model of every educator and every believer, because he was able to cross the darkness of doubt, the experience of exile and of having to flee from his home, without ever losing his trust in God and in His love. Learn from him that only faith in God can turn doubt into certainty, evil into good, the total darkness of the night into a radiant dawn".

The Pope spoke of St. Joseph to 80 thousand people present in St Peter's Square, whose "great mission" is "to be the guardian". He Pope this was the mission of all fathers, to whom he addressed his best wishes on Father's Day, inviting us to pray "for those fathers who are alive and those who are dead, for our dads".

"We look at Joseph - had said in catechesis - as the model of the educator, who safeguards and accompanies Jesus in his journey of growth "in wisdom, years and grace", as the Gospel of Luke tells us. "He was not the father of Jesus, the Father was God, but he was a father to help him grow in years, wisdom and grace".

"Let's start with his age, which is the most natural dimension, physical and psychological growth. Joseph, together with Mary, took care of Jesus, first of all from this point of view, he  'raised him' , worrying that he had all he needed for a healthy development . Let us not forget that the faithful care of the life of the Child also led to the flight into Egypt, the harsh experience of living as refugees to escape the threat of Herod. Then, once they returned home and settled in Nazareth, there is the long period of the hidden life of Jesus within the Holy Family. During those years, Joseph also taught Jesus his work, Jesus learned to be a carpenter".

"Let's move on to the second dimension of Christ's education, that of "wisdom". Scripture says that the beginning of wisdom is fear of the Lord. Joseph was an example and teacher of this wisdom for Jesus, which he nourished by the Word of God.  We can imagine how Joseph taught the child Jesus to listen to the Holy Scriptures, especially accompanying him on the Sabbath to the synagogue in Nazareth. Joseph accompanied Jesus so he would listen to the word of God in the synagogue".

"And finally, the dimension of "grace". Again St. Luke tells us referring to Jesus: "The grace of God was upon him". Here certainly the part reserved to St Joseph is more limited than in the areas of age and wisdom. But it would be a grave mistake to think that a father and a mother do nothing to educate their children to grow in the grace of God".

"The mission of St. Joseph is certainly unique and unrepeatable, because Jesus is unique.  However, in his guarding Jesus, educating him to grow in years, wisdom and grace, he is a model for all educators, especially for parents. St. Joseph is the model educator and father, the model for dads. Therefore I entrust all parents, priests - who are fathers - and those who have an educational role in the Church and in society to his protection".

"In a special way, I wish to greet all parents, all dads today on Father's Day, I greet you from my heart! Let's see: are there any dads here in the square? Raise your hand, dads! Look, how many dads! Greetings, greetings on your feast Day! I ask for you the grace to always be very close to your children, letting them grow, but close. Close to them, eh? They need you, your presence, your closeness, your love. Be like St. Joseph for them, guardians of their growth in age, wisdom and grace. Guardians of their journey. Educators! And walk with them. And in your closeness, be true educators . Thank you for all that you do for your children: Thank you. A you best wishes and happy Father's Day to all the fathers who are here, to all the fathers. May St. Joseph bless you and be with you. And also, some of us have lost our father, he may have passed away, the Lord has called him: many in the square no longer have their father.  We pray for all fathers of the world, for living fathers and even for those who are dead, and we can do this together, each recalling his or her father, alive or dead. And pray to the great Father of us all, the Father, Our Father, for our dads".

The Life of St. Joseph

Pope Francis: Celebrating Christmas contemplating Mary and Joseph

At the Sunday Angelus Francis comments on a banner: " The poor can not wait ," recalling the misery of those without a home. "Family and home go together." The invitation to the "pitchfork" protesters in Italy to "defend their rights" choosing "the path of dialogue". Joseph was tested like Abraham . He "did not insist on pursuing his life project, he did not allow resentment to poison his soul , but was prepared to place himself at the service of the novelty he was presented with".


Vatican City ( AsiaNews) - " ... We should celebrate Christmas contemplating Mary and Joseph .... With them, we walk together towards Bethlehem".  This was Pope Francis' invitation to the tens of thousands of pilgrims gathered in St Peter's Square for the Angelus today, the last Sunday of Advent (the fourth ), the period leading up to Christmas . Immediately after the Marian prayer , he focused on a banner held up by those present in the square: " The poor can not wait," and devoted a special greeting to a group of believers , together with members of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions ( PIME) .

The pope said: "Mary, [ is ] full of grace, the woman who had the courage to totally trust in the Word of God, Joseph, the faithful and just man who preferred to believe in the Lord instead of listening to the voices of doubt and human pride". But his reflection, commenting on today's Gospel (Matthew 1 , 18-24) , was primarily a story of the birth of Jesus "from St. Joseph's point of view".
It should be remembered that Francis has entrusted his pontificate to the intercession of St. Joseph . The inaugural Mass of his pontificate took place on the feast of St. Joseph (March 19, 2013 ).

The pontiff outlined Joseph's personality, the betrothed of Mary, when he discovers that his betrothed was "with child through the Holy Spirit".

"When Joseph becomes aware of this fact - continued the Pope - he remains perplexed. The Gospel does not explain what his thoughts were, but it tells us what is essential: he tries to do the will of God and is ready to make a radical renunciation. Instead of defending himself and assert his rights , Joseph chooses a solution that represents a huge sacrifice for him : " since he was a righteous man,

yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly" ( 1:19) .
This short sentence sums up a real inner drama, if we think of Joseph's love for Mary , but even in such a circumstance, Joseph intends to do the will of God and decides , no doubt with great pain , to repudiate Mary in private".

Joseph's trial is similar to that of Abraham, "when God asked him for his son Isaac (cf. Gen 22) : to give up the most precious thing, the most beloved person . But, as in the case of Abraham, the Lord intervenes : he found the faith that opens and finds a different path , a path of love and happiness , "Joseph - he says - do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her"( Mt 1:20 )".
" This Gospel - he concluded - shows us the greatness of St. Joseph's soul . He was leading a good life, he had plans but God had other plans for him, a greater mission . Joseph was a man who always listened to the voice of God , deeply sensitive to his secret will, a man attentive to the messages that came from the heart and from on high. He did not insist on pursuing his life project, he did not allow resentment to poison his soul , but was prepared to place himself at the service of the novelty he was presented with. And thus he became even freer and greater. Accept everything according to the Lord's, Joseph finds himself fully, he goes beyond himself. This freedom to give up all that he has, to renounce his own existence, and his full availability to the inner will of God, challenges us and shows us the way".

After the Angelus prayer, speaking off the cuff, the pontiff commented on one of the many banners hoisted by so-called "pitchforks" , impromptu groups of Italian families and small business owners who protest the difficult economic situation and politicians' delay in finding solutions.

"I see - said the pope - a large banner : the poor can not wait. It makes me think that Jesus, who was born in a stable. He was not born in a house. Then they had to flee, to Egypt to save his life . Eventually he returned to his home in Nazareth. And I think today, even reading this, of the many homeless families, either because they never had a home, or because they lost it for many reasons. Families and go home together. It 's very difficult to raise a family without a home. During these days of Christmas , I invite all persons, entities and social authorities to do everything possible to ensure that every family can have a home".


After the greetings, which included a special greeting for the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions , Francis added: " To those of Italy gathered to express their social commitment, may you always choose the path of dialogue, in defending your rights. I wish you all a Christmas of hope, justice and brotherhood".

Work: An Act of Worship

The following comes from Catholic Exchange:

Has man’s God-given vocation been entirely lost sight of?  

Look around you. You live in a world that has lost faith. Religion has been replaced by work and achievement. In such a world, men take work very seriously. They want nothing less than perfection in it. Hence, their goal and their norm of judgment is efficiency. Consequently men are judged not by what they are, but by what they cando. No wonder your economic world wobbles. It has lost its center of gravity.

Your primary vocation, like that of every other human, is to be, not to do. Your life’s aim is holiness, not efficiency. God and godliness, not production, is your goal, for you have an immortal soul; you are not a machine. Every work and every profession, even the highest, is but a means for man to express his inner wholeness and to acquire more holiness; none of them is ever to become any man’s idol or total absorption.

You are now grappling with truths that have been horribly distorted in your day. Twist them back into shape so that you will be able to live twenty-four hours a day as a human, a child of God, and not spend a great part of your life on earth as a robot that keeps going through the motions so that it can make a living, but which is really only waiting for the whistle that will allow it to go out and play.

Realize first that while all men are created equal, all men are not born equal. Far from it! Some are born with silver spoons in their mouths; others with a pick and shovel by their side. In his encyclical on labor, Leo XIII showed that society always was and always will be stratified. God so wills it, as is evident from the fact that “among mankind, differences of the most important kind exist: people differ in capacity, skill, health, strength. Unequal fortune is the result of unequal condition.”

But note well that for attaining their last end, for getting back to God whole and holy, each human has been liberally endowed by His Maker. No man has grounds for complaint. You may not be gifted enough to conquer the world, but you have more than enough to conquer your sinful self — and that is, of course, the only conquest that counts. In eternity, you will not be judged on productivity, but only on Christlikeness. Hence it is essential that you learn how you can grow in Christlikeness while at work, for work you must. It is the God-given law of life.

Work is part of God’s plan for humans. But God is your Father, and God is all-good. Therefore, the work potentials He gave you must be for your happiness.

Work is holy

The second step is easy. If work is God’s will, it must be sanctifying; for, in ultimate analysis, sanctity is only doing the will of God. Therefore, work is a sacred thing; it is a “sacramental” — an outward sign that can give grace. Hence, you can go to work for the same reason you go to church to worship God! Work is a religious thing. It is holy.

That view, of course, is the antithesis of the way many modern men conceive work. They exalt it, but only by a complete reversal of values and truths. The person who helps produce impersonal goods is placed far below the goods he helps to produce and is thus completely dehumanized. Pius XI exposed this situation in his Quadragesimo Anno, saying, “Conditions of social and economic life are such that vast multitudes of men can only with great difficulty pay attention to the one thing necessary; namely, their eternal salvation.” But you can combat those conditions and overcome that very real difficulty. All you need to do is to think with the mind of Christ and will with the will of God; then you will go to work for the same purpose you go to church.

Is that possible? Well, you are what your thoughts are. A man is his mind. What are your thoughts and motives for going to church? The same can be had for going to work, for first it is God’s will. Therefore, you can make it an act of obedience to your Father. Faith, hope, and charity are already exercised in that one act and attitude of mind. Further, since you know it was the first penance laid on a sinner, you can make it reparation for your own sins and the sins of the world. You can make it plead with God for mercy on all who toil and thus fulfill those two commandments of love of God and love of neighbor which Christ said was all that is required of man.

Have you ever realized that, in making you a worker, God has given you a share in that universal Providence by which He governs the human race and in His act of conservation by which He keeps the world in being? If you are a farmer, you well know you work hand in hand with God in the production of food for man’s body and, hence, indirectly for his soul. The multiplications of bread and fishes, twice told about in the New Testament, were truly marvelous happenings. Yet St. Augustine is right to laugh at those who marvel, as he points to the relatively few seeds that are sown in the earth and the millions that are fed from their harvests. He reminds you that this annual miracle is due to God just as much as those multiplications you read of in the Gospels.

But God’s Providence does not end in the fields. He rules the entire process from the sowing of the seeds to the growth, the harvest, then the threshing, milling, and marketing. He has a hand, too, in the baking of the bread and putting it on your table. So, in all truth, every human who helps in the process is actually working hand in hand with God.

This truth brings Heaven very near. Prunes may grow in California, potatoes in Idaho, peaches in Georgia, wheat in Kansas, and corn in Kentucky; beef may be raised in Texas, and hogs butchered in Chicago. But none of these commodities will ever be served at any table miles and miles away unless all sorts of men and women cooperate with God in producing, processing, preserving, shipping, selling, and preparing them. So everyone from the grower to the boy who pastes on the labels to the housewife or the hired chef are God’s helpers — so that you may have a meal.

Viewed in that perspective, how can work be anything other than worship? Since Adam fell, work should be a sacred thing! For it can be offered to God in thanksgiving for the pardon He extended to the sinner, as expiation for the sin committed, in petition that there be no more falls, but rather an ever-increasing adoration of God’s will and His Providence. But those four ends are the four ends of the Mass. Hence, your work can be, and should be, Eucharistic: sacrifice and sacrament.

Only out-and-out pagans can consider work servile. In the Roman Empire, before Christ and Christianity, slaves did all the work. The so-called cultured class deemed it beneath their dignity to toil. But since the Son of God became the village Carpenter, no truly cultured person can look upon work — hard, manual labor — as anything less than ennobling, even deifying.

The Council of Trent has taught that the Passion and death of Christ were the principal means He used to redeem mankind. That explicit bit of dogma teaches you implicitly that it was not on Calvary alone that Christ redeemed. In other words, when Jesus was down in Nazareth working on wood, He was redeeming mankind just as truly as when He was on Calvary nailed to wood. It tells you that when Jesus’ hands held a plane or a saw, He was doing His Father’s will and thus making salvation possible for you, just as truly as when these same hands held spikes and were held by them! The Son of God was redeeming men at the carpenter’s bench in the obscurity of Nazareth just as surely as when He was followed by crowds that would take Him and make Him king — just as surely as when He was followed by that other crowd that had taken Him, mocked Him, and crucified Him for being King!

ST. JOSEPH’s name now in All 4 Eucharistic Prayers

Fr. Z has the news of St. Joseph's name being added to each of the Eucharistic Prayers:

Have you seen the news?  Decades after John XXIII placed the name of Joseph in the Roman Canon, it seems that the name of the great Patron of the Dying, Terror of Demons, will be in the Eucharistic Prayers II, III and IV in the 3rd edition of the Missale Romanum.

Read the whole story here.

Pope's Homily during Inauguration Mass: Protect one Another

The following comes from Zenit.org:

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

I thank the Lord that I can celebrate this Holy Mass for the inauguration of my Petrine ministry on the solemnity of Saint Joseph, the spouse of the Virgin Mary and the patron of the universal Church.  It is a significant coincidence, and it is also the name-day of my venerable predecessor: we are close to him with our prayers, full of affection and gratitude.

I offer a warm greeting to my brother cardinals and bishops, the priests, deacons, men and women religious, and all the lay faithful.  I thank the representatives of the other Churches and ecclesial Communities, as well as the representatives of the Jewish community and the other religious communities, for their presence.  My cordial greetings go to the Heads of State and Government, the members of the official Delegations from many countries throughout the world, and the Diplomatic Corps.

In the Gospel we heard that “Joseph did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took Mary as his wife” (Mt 1:24).  These words already point to the mission which God entrusts to Joseph: he is to be the custos, the protector.  The protector of whom?  Of Mary and Jesus; but this protection is then extended to the Church, as Blessed John Paul II pointed out: “Just as Saint Joseph took loving care of Mary and gladly dedicated himself to Jesus Christ’s upbringing, he likewise watches over and protects Christ’s Mystical Body, the Church, of which the Virgin Mary is the exemplar and model” (Redemptoris Custos, 1).

How does Joseph exercise his role as protector?  Discreetly, humbly and silently, but with an unfailing presence and utter fidelity, even when he finds it hard to understand.  From the time of his betrothal to Mary until the finding of the twelve-year-old Jesus in the Temple of Jerusalem, he is there at every moment with loving care.  As the spouse of Mary, he is at her side in good times and bad, on the journey to Bethlehem for the census and in the anxious and joyful hours when she gave birth; amid the drama of the flight into Egypt and during the frantic search for their child in the Temple; and later in the day-to-day life of the home of Nazareth, in the workshop where he taught his trade to Jesus.

How does Joseph respond to his calling to be the protector of Mary, Jesus and the Church?  By being constantly attentive to God, open to the signs of God’s presence and receptive to God’s plans, and not simply to his own.  This is what God asked of David, as we heard in the first reading.  God does not want a house built by men, but faithfulness to his word, to his plan.  It is God himself who builds the house, but from living stones sealed by his Spirit.  Joseph is a “protector” because he is able to hear God’s voice and be guided by his will; and for this reason he is all the more sensitive to the persons entrusted to his safekeeping. He can look at things realistically, he is in touch with his surroundings, he can make truly wise decisions.  In him, dear friends, we learn how to respond to God’s call, readily and willingly, but we also see the core of the Christian vocation, which is Christ!  Let us protect Christ in our lives, so that we can protect others, so that we can protect creation!

The vocation of being a “protector”, however, is not just something involving us Christians alone; it also has a prior dimension which is simply human, involving everyone.  It means protecting all creation, the beauty of the created world, as the Book of Genesis tells us and as Saint Francis of Assisi showed us.  It means respecting each of God’s creatures and respecting the environment in which we live. It means protecting people, showing loving concern for each and every person, especially children, the elderly, those in need, who are often the last we think about.  It means caring for one another in our families: husbands and wives first protect one another, and then, as parents, they care for their children, and children themselves, in time, protect their parents.  It means building sincere friendships in which we protect one another in trust, respect, and goodness.  In the end, everything has been entrusted to our protection, and all of us are responsible for it.  Be protectors of God’s gifts!

Whenever human beings fail to live up to this responsibility, whenever we fail to care for creation and for our brothers and sisters, the way is opened to destruction and hearts are hardened.   Tragically, in every period of history there are “Herods” who plot death, wreak havoc, and mar the countenance of men and women.

Please, I would like to ask all those who have positions of responsibility in economic, political and social life, and all men and women of goodwill: let us be “protectors” of creation, protectors of God’s plan inscribed in nature, protectors of one another and of the environment.  Let us not allow omens of destruction and death to accompany the advance of this world!  But to be “protectors”, we also have to keep watch over ourselves!  Let us not forget that hatred, envy and pride defile our lives!  Being protectors, then, also means keeping watch over our emotions, over our hearts, because they are the seat of good and evil intentions: intentions that build up and tear down!  We must not be afraid of goodness or even tenderness!

Here I would add one more thing: caring, protecting, demands goodness, it calls for a certain tenderness.  In the Gospels, Saint Joseph appears as a strong and courageous man, a working man, yet in his heart we see great tenderness, which is not the virtue of the weak but rather a sign of strength of spirit and a capacity for concern, for compassion, for genuine openness to others, for love.  We must not be afraid of goodness, of tenderness!

Today, together with the feast of Saint Joseph, we are celebrating the beginning of the ministry of the new Bishop of Rome, the Successor of Peter, which also involves a certain power.  Certainly, Jesus Christ conferred power upon Peter, but what sort of power was it?  Jesus’ three questions to Peter about love are followed by three commands: feed my lambs, feed my sheep.  Let us never forget that authentic power is service, and that the Pope too, when exercising power, must enter ever more fully into that service which has its radiant culmination on the Cross.  He must be inspired by the lowly, concrete and faithful service which marked Saint Joseph and, like him, he must open his arms to protect all of God’s people and embrace with tender affection the whole of humanity, especially the poorest, the weakest, the least important, those whom Matthew lists in the final judgment on love: the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick and those in prison (cf. Mt 25:31-46).  Only those who serve with love are able to protect!

In the second reading, Saint Paul speaks of Abraham, who, “hoping against hope, believed” (Rom 4:18).  Hoping against hope!  Today too, amid so much darkness, we need to see the light of hope and to be men and women who bring hope to others.  To protect creation, to protect every man and every woman, to look upon them with tenderness and love, is to open up a horizon of hope; it is to let a shaft of light break through the heavy clouds; it is to bring the warmth of hope!  For believers, for us Christians, like Abraham, like Saint Joseph, the hope that we bring is set against the horizon of God, which has opened up before us in Christ.  It is a hope built on the rock which is God.

To protect Jesus with Mary, to protect the whole of creation, to protect each person, especially the poorest, to protect ourselves: this is a service that the Bishop of Rome is called to carry out, yet one to which all of us are called, so that the star of hope will shine brightly.  Let us protect with love all that God has given us!

I implore the intercession of the Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph, Saints Peter and Paul, and Saint Francis, that the Holy Spirit may accompany my ministry, and I ask all of you to pray for me!  Amen.

St. Joseph, Father of the New Evangelization

The following comes from Zenit.org:

March is the month of St. Joseph, whose feast the Church will celebrate Monday. Currently the holy patron of Vatican II is now seen as the “Father of the New Evangelization” and “the holy patron of the third millennium,” according to an  initiative launched by the bishop of the French diocese of Frejus-Toulon, Bishop Dominique Rey

On Saturday, the Diocese of Frejus-Toulon will be consecrated to Saint Joseph.

Saint Joseph had a special role in the preparation of Vatican Council II, given that Pope John XXIII chose him as a protector of the event, with his Apostolic Letter of March 19, 1961. In the text, Blessed John XXIII mentions “the voices that come to Us from all points of the earth” and the documents on Saint Joseph of his predecessors, from Pius IX to Pius XIII. In his document, the Pope proposed, in addition, that on March 19, Saint Joseph’s altar in the Vatican Basilica “be clothed in new splendor, wider and more solemn” to become a “point of attraction and religious piety for individual souls, for innumerable crowds.”

Then, in October of 1962, he made a gift of his papal ring to Joseph, offering it to the Polish shrine of Kalisz, where a painting of Saint Joseph is kept, which is considered miraculous.

It was Blessed John XXIII, moreover, who had Saint Joseph’s name inserted in the Canon of the Mass, as he announced in his address at the closing of the first session of the Council on Dec. 8, 1962. 

The Shrine at Knock

John Paul II in turn gave his ring to Saint Joseph, to whom he had also been devoted since his childhood. The ring was placed by Cardinal Franciszek Macharski, archbishop of Krakow, in the church of Carmel, a shrine dedicated to Saint Joseph, on March 19, 2004.

The Polish Pope recalled the importance of Saint Joseph for the life of the Church in his Apostolic Exhortation Redemptoris Custos (August 15, 1989), a century after Pope Leo XIII’s encyclical Quanquam Pluries (August 15, 1889) on devotion to Saint Joseph.

For his part, Benedict XVI announced recently a Year of Faith, starting on the 50th anniversary of Vatican II. On many occasions, Benedict XVI has invited Catholics to learn from the school of Saint Joseph, to have a “spiritual conversation” with him, linked to a renewal of faith. Before the Angelus on December 18, 2005, for example, he said: “It is therefore particularly appropriate in the days that precede Christmas to establish a sort of spiritual conversation with St Joseph, so that he may help us live to the full this great mystery of faith.”

On March 18, 2009, in Yaounde, Cameroon, the Pope dedicated his homily to his patron saint. Addressing all the people of God, he concluded saying that in Saint Joseph there is no separation between faith and action. 

“Dear brothers and sisters, our meditation on the human and spiritual journey of Saint Joseph invites us to ponder his vocation in all its richness, and to see him as a constant model for all those who have devoted their lives to Christ in the priesthood, in the consecrated life or in the different forms of lay engagement. Joseph was caught up at every moment by the mystery of the Incarnation. Not only physically, but in his heart as well, Joseph reveals to us the secret of a humanity which dwells in the presence of mystery and is open to that mystery at every moment of everyday life. In Joseph, faith is not separated from action. His faith had a decisive effect on his actions. Paradoxically, it was by acting, by carrying out his responsibilities, that he stepped aside and left God free to act, placing no obstacles in his way. Joseph is a 'just man' (Mt 1:19) because his existence is 'ad-justed' to the word of God.”

The Year for Priests

On December 19, 2010, the 4th Sunday of Advent, Benedict XVI reflected before the Angelus on the Announcement to Joseph, entrusting to his protection all priests worldwide, stressing his role of “legal Father” of Jesus in God’s plan of salvation. “In witnessing to Mary’s virginity, to God’s gratuitous action and in safeguarding the Messiah’s earthly life St Joseph announces the miracle of the Lord. Therefore let us venerate the legal father of Jesus (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 532), because the new man is outlined in him, who looks with trust and courage to the future. He does not follow his own plans but entrusts himself without reserve to the infinite mercy of the One who will fulfil the prophecies and open the time of salvation.” said the Pope.

“Dear friends, I would like to entrust all Pastors to St Joseph, universal Patron of the Church, while I urge them to offer “Christ’s [humble] words and actions each day to the faithful and to the whole world”, (Letter Proclaiming the Year for Priests, 16 June 2009).),” he continued.

Brother Andre and Cotignac

On Sunday, October 17, 2010, the Pope canonized in Rome the Canadian Religious apostle of Saint Joseph, Brother Andre Bessette (1845-1937), who had Saint Joseph’s Oratory in Montreal built, of which he was custodian until his death.

For its part, the Diocese of Frejus-Toulon has on its territory the shrine of Cotignac, entrusted to the Brothers of Saint John, where in June of 1660 the Holy Custodian appeared to a 22-year-old shepherd of Provence, Gaspard Ricard, pointing to a large rock and saying simply: “I am Joseph, move it and you will drink.”

Louis XIV, going on pilgrimage to Cotignac, only 10 days after his ascent to the throne, entrusted France to the protection of Saint Joseph the following year, on March 19, 1661.