St. Joseph the Worker

May 1st is the feast of St. Joseph the Worker.

There’s a favorite song of mine that reminds me of St. Joseph. It’s called “The Carpenter.”

Let us now praise a carpenter and the things that he made
And the way that he lived by the tools of his trade.
He was tough as a crowbar, quick as a chisel,
Fair as a plane and true as a level.
He was straight as a chalk line… and right as a rule;
He was square with the world, he took good care of his tools.
He said anything that’s worth cuttin’ down a tree for
Is worth doin’ right; don’t the Lord love a two-by-four.

Over the centuries, the Church has found it necessary to keep reminding the world that Jesus was truly human. From the beginning, the Church has proudly emphasized that Jesus was a carpenter… obviously trained by Joseph.

Joseph — it seems to me —  must’ve taught Jesus both the “satisfactions” of that vocation… as well as the “drudgery.” 

The Church continues to remind us that humanity reflects the image of God — not only in “thinking” and “loving” —  but also in “creating.” Whether we build a table or a cathedral, our mission is to bear fruit with our minds AND our hands … always for the building up of the Body of Christ. 

Everything we know about the husband of Mary — the foster father of Jesus — comes from Scripture. But that’s been “too little” for some. So legends about him have been made up. 

We DO know he was a carpenter…a working man. The skeptical Nazarenes asked about Jesus: “Is this not the carpenter’s son?” 

We know that Joseph wasn’t a rich man. When he took Jesus to the Temple to be circumcised — and Mary to be purified —  he offered the sacrifice of two turtledoves or pigeons, because he couldn’t afford a lamb: the preferred sacrifice of the wealthy. 

We also know that Joseph was a compassionate, caring man. When he discovered Mary was pregnant — and he wasn’t the father —  he thought about divorcing her. But he knew that women accused of adultery could be stoned to death; so he decided to divorce her quietly. 

Obviously, Joseph was a man of great faith. He was obedient to whatever God asked of him without ever knowing the outcome.  When the angel came to him in a dream and told him the truth about the child Mary was carrying, Joseph immediately and without question took Mary as his wife.

Pope John Paul II taught us that Saint Joseph is the model of fatherhood. He said: Generations of fathers have followed in Joseph’s footsteps… fathers who — with the example of a simple and laborious life —imprinted on their children’s souls the inestimable value of faith, without which every other good runs the risk of being in vain. 

St. Joseph the Worker: carpenter… obedient servant of God… model of fatherhood.

Deacon Denny Williams
St. Thomas the Apostle Parish
Grand Rapids, MI