St. Joseph, teach all fathers and men to be courageous for those in their care! St. Joseph, help all men to be fathers and leaders after the heart of God the father! St. Joseph protect the Holy Catholic Church of your Son from the attacks of darkness and evil which are upon us now!

The Church (and all of us who believe) are currently surrounded by political, economic, and natural evils that wish to take goodness, truth, beauty, and even the joy of living itself from our lives. Like St. Joseph, we will persevere with the help of God’s grace in faith, hope, and love, no matter what the future brings. We know that God will overcome all sickness, suffering and human and supernatural evil for those who are faithful and persevere courageously like St. Joseph. The promise of Christmas is that Light will conquer Darkness once and for all.

All fathers are called to be prepared and ready to protect their family in the hour of need, and so we ask St. Joseph to help us be spiritually ready first of all for whatever may happen in the near future. We have been reflecting on messages from heaven for the last nine months that have called us to be ready and attentive for it appears that a new era in time’s progress toward the Kingdom of God may be upon us. Are you ready to respond to the Father’s will and do whatever is necessary for the spiritual safety and salvation of your own soul and of those around you like St. Joseph was? Daily prayer, the praying of the rosary and the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, the Sacraments of Confession and Holy Communion, reading of the Bible, and acts of love and charity for others are the tools that we must employ these days for the protection and prosperity of our souls and the souls of others. Are we willing to work for the Kingdom of God by using these tools in order to make a spiritual living for ourselves and our families?

St. Joseph was called to make timely, courageous decisions to act toward the will of God and so are we. The time is short and we must courageously prepare and act decisively, like St. Joseph, for our own salvation and that of those around us.

Dear St. Joseph, teach us to be courageous for God and for one another like you were at the time our Savior was born. Teach us to live the truth with great love and courage! May we trust that the Light will always conquer the Darkness when we remain and act in the Grace of Christ!

Fr. Christopher Derda
North Allegan Collaborative
Byron Center, Mi

I am eternally grateful to be alive living in an era when I have been blessed to be shepherded by first Saint John Paul II, then Pope Benedict XVI, and now Pope Francis.  I really do not remember the Popes before Saint John Paul II since I was quite young during those years.  I am also thankful that Pope Francis has declared 2021 the year of Saint Joseph.  A major Saint who simply does not get enough recognition.

As a Marion Deacon, I often explain that a devotion to Mary equals obedience to God.  This is only second to our devotion to Saint Joseph her most chaste spouse.  Without these two, we would not have the shining example of what it means to obey God!  We know about Mary, but Joseph was just as obedient.  His swift obedience is only matched by his strong faith in God and his trust in Mary.

Who would have blamed him if he did not believe that his fiancée was pregnant via the Holy Spirit?  Who would have chastised him if he had walked away and simply declared that this was too much for him to believe? After all, who was he that God almighty would choose him to be the earthly spouse of the Mother of God; a poor carpenter, unknown, unassuming, with nothing to gain. 

The fact that Saint Joseph stepped up when he had no proof that what he believed to be true was actually divine truth, it is a testament to his incredible amount of faith in God.  If his circumstances had not been true, he would have been the biggest fool throughout history.  Instead Saint Joseph is an excellent example of what it means to be obedient to God, a model husband, and a devoted father.  One of my favorite sayings about obedience is “delayed obedience is disobedience.”  This of course is inspired by Saint Mary and Saint Joseph.

Oh Saint Joseph patron saint of workers, pray for us!

Deacon Dean Vernon
Saint Thomas the Apostle
Grand Rapids, Mi

When I was 20, my dad randomly suggested that I should apply to work for the Post Office. In my mid 20’s, he discovered the only house I would ever own. After a 13-year postal career, I would later sell that house and join seminary. He instilled in me my Catholic faith and a good work ethic. It was during seminary that dear ol’ dad would pass from this world to the next. I was at his bedside when the Lord took him home.

Although my father was not in attendance at my priestly ordination Mass in June of 2017, my sister later said that she experienced something profound. She told me that during the ordination Mass, she thought she felt a warm hand gently touch her shoulder. As other family members heard this news, we immediately thought of my dad. He had formed us in the faith, and in a way, he was still with us in shared memories.

A father envisions the faithful completion of his children’s journeys. Although Joseph was not present at Jesus’ Passion, we know that Joseph instilled in Jesus all the qualities and strengths of a faithful Jew, a carpenter, and an upright man. Humble Joseph was an important figure in Christ’s life, even though he didn’t witness His ministry.

The death of St Joseph is wonderfully displayed in a stained-glass window at St. Andrew Cathedral. Mary and Jesus are at Joseph’s side. I often imagine Joseph’s final words were reassurances of faith and of gratitude. What an incredible grace to die in the arms of the two holiest people to ever walk the earth!

This Lent, let us imagine that as Jesus journeyed to save us from sin and death on the cross, St. Joseph had helped prepare Him for this saving act of love.

My father guided me during his time on earth and continues to pray for me from above. In the same way, the upbringing Joseph gave to Jesus helped prepare Him to be crucified, even after Joseph had reached his heavenly home.

Fr Steve Geerling
St Bartholomew & St Joseph
Grand Rapids, MI

The New Testament presents Christ as the new High Priest, offering the perfect sacrifice
to the Father. Though not explicitly stated, there are also many allusions in the New Testament to Mary as the Ark of the Covenant, a connection that was made explicit in the writings of the early Church. In this schema, drawing from the ritual practices of ancient Israel, is there room for St. Joseph? I think there is. If Jesus is the High Priest of the New Covenant and Mary is the Ark, I believe St. Joseph is the Levite.

Let me first say that, unlike the identification of Jesus as the High Priest and Mary as the Ark, the idea of St. Joseph as the Levite does not have widely recognized Scriptural underpinnings, nor am I aware of any other writers who make the connection. But from what little Scripture does say about St. Joseph, I think we can see a connection to the Levites of the Old Covenant.

Who were the Levites? The Levites were one of the twelve tribes of Israel. The tribe of Levi was unique in that all the ministers of the Tabernacle, and later the Temple, were of the tribe of Levi. Those descended from Levi’s great-great-grandson Aaron were the priests who offered sacrifice. The descendants of Levi who were not descended from Aaron functioned as Levites. The Levites did not offer sacrifice but had other roles, including carrying the Ark of the Covenant (1 Chronicles 15:2) and custody of the items used for worship (Numbers 1:50-53). They are described as being given to the priest to assist them (Numbers 8:19). The Levites also helped prepare the sacrifices, in particular the Passover lambs (2 Chronicles 35:11) and the showbread (1 Chronicles 9:31).

From this, we can begin to see a connection to St. Joseph. Just as the Levites were tasked with assisting the priests in the Temple and caring for the Ark of the Covenant, so St. Joseph was charged with serving the new High Priest and the new Ark, Jesus, and Mary. As the Levites helped prepare the sacrifices, Joseph helped Jesus, the Lamb of God, and Bread of Life, to prepare for His supreme sacrifice. St. Luke hints at this when he says that Christ was obedient to Joseph and Mary and so grew in wisdom, stature, and favor (Luke 2:51-52). St. Joseph’s teaching and example were part of Jesus’s preparation for His mission.

Seeing Joseph as the new Levite also helps us understand his marital continence. In the Old Testament, sexual relations, even between a husband and wife, rendered them ritually impure (Leviticus 15:16-18). It should be noted that ritual impurity is distinct from moral impurity. Sex between a married couple was not considered morally sinful, but it did make them ritually impure. For most people, being in a state of ritual purity had no bearing on their daily lives. However, priests and Levites were required to be ritually pure while fulfilling their duties. The priests and Levites were divided into groups that took turns throughout the year, and during their service, they were required to maintain ritual purity, which included sexual continence. If Joseph is the Levite tasked with serving the High Priest and the New Ark, then his service lasted not simply for two weeklong terms each year but from the time he took Mary into his home until his death. As such, we can understand his maintaining sexual continence so as to be ritually pure.

Understanding St. Joseph in the context of a Levite also shines a light on common the priesthood of the faithful. As the Catechism states, all of the faithful share in the priesthood of  Christ. St. Joseph was not a Levite by genealogy. He was descended of King David and of the Tribe of Judah. In fact, Joseph’s fear of taking Mary as his wife echoes David’s fear of bringing the Ark into Jerusalem (2 Samuel 6:9). Yet, St. Joseph fulfilled a priestly role. He did not do this by serving liturgically in the Temple but in the course of his daily life. In his role as a husband, father, and worker, St. Joseph also fulfilled his role as the Levite of the New Covenant. Likewise, the members of the lay faithful participate in the priesthood of Christ in the midst of their daily lives. We serve Christ and prepare the parts of our lives so that they can be united to His perfect sacrifice, just as the Levites served the priests and prepared the sacrifices for them.

Seeing St. Joseph as the Levite of the New Covenant also provides greater depth to his role in salvation history. He was not only there to provide for the material needs of Mary and Jesus. He had a sacred duty, one which is ultimately tied to Christ’s role as the new High Priest. As we draw closer to St. Joseph, he helps us to see how our daily lives also cooperate in the sacrifice of Jesus.

~Fr. Dotson
St Charles Borromeo
St Charles, MO

On December 8, 2020, Pope Francis announced the Year of St. Joseph.  Because of my personal devotion to St. Joseph, when I heard the news, my heart leapt for joy.  Pope Francis begins his apostolic letter, “WITH A FATHER’S HEART: that is how Joseph loved Jesus. St. Joseph loves each of us with a Father’s heart as well and wants to bring us closer to his Son. Our time spent reflecting on the life of St. Joseph and his role in salvation history will ultimately lead us to a deeper relationship with his son, Jesus, and God, our heavenly Father through the workings of the Holy Spirit.

In the Gospel passage, Matthew 1:16, 18-21, 24a, we see that Joseph was a righteous man. A righteous person puts his or her relationship with God before all else in life and cares for people as God would care for them.  In scriptures, someone who is righteous reflects God’s compassion.

As a righteous man, Saint Joseph sets an example for all Christians, as well as all people of good will (cf. Lk 2:14). Saint Irenaeus teaches that righteous people are those who “love the God who made them and do nothing unjust against their neighbor.” Although Saint Irenaeus was not writing specifically about Saint Joseph, his definition certainly can be applied to the Spouse of Our Lady. (https://catholicstarherald.org/saint-joseph-the-righteous-is-the-model-for-every-man/)

Being a righteous man required St. Joseph to put his personal wants and desires aside, for the greater good of his family.  God called him to an extraordinary life, much different than St. Joseph probably envisioned for himself.  In his righteousness, he seeks to divorce Mary secretly, quietly, so as to protect her and her child.  The Church has not definitely taught why St. Joseph responded to this situation in the way he did.  On Day 16 of the Consecration, Father Galloway explores these three theories. (Consecration to St. Joseph: The Wonders of Our Spiritual Father by Father Donald Galloway)  Maybe St. Joseph suspected that Mary had committed adultery, maybe St. Joseph was perplexed and could not understand the situation but believed in Mary’s innocence. Or maybe St. Joseph understood that God had truly brought forth life in Mary’s womb and in his righteousness, he deemed himself to be unworthy to take care of Mary and the child.  Whichever theory is correct, one thing is certain, when the angel tells him “Be not afraid to take Mary into your home,” his righteousness leads to obedience.

How often do we allow our self-righteousness to get in the way of our obedience to God and his plan for our lives? We accept his blessings without a second thought to how he is calling us to use them for the betterment of our world. Each day, God blesses us with many different gifts, but do we offer those gifts back to God by using them to build up his kingdom here on earth?

Self-righteousness leads to selfishness and hardness of heart.  In our self-righteousness, we judge others not to be worthy of our love.  We fail to see the sin in our own lives, and we look down on others. When this occurs, we place ourselves in the place of God.  This path will lead to certain destruction through addiction, a lack of respect for the human dignity of others, and a deteriorating understanding of our own value as children of God.  Self-righteousness takes us away from God’s love, love of self, and love of others.  Self-righteousness is a disease that leads to pride, use of others, and division.  The only cure for self-righteousness is to put aside our own wants and desires and to surrender to God’s love through obedience.  

In our world today, obedience has a negative connotation and is often seen as a word of oppression. We view obedience as a forced, unwilling decision to do something we don’t want to do because we’re afraid of punishment.  Yet that’s not the kind of obedience to which God calls us. In the actions of St. Joseph, we see the true definition of obedience rooted in love.  Obedience to God is humbly acknowledging the fact that we are not God.  It is not only accepting God’s love in our lives but returning that love by seeking to do His will.  This might not always be easy, and often we may not understand what the future may hold, but God reassures us in the words of the angel to St. Joseph “Be not Afraid.”

We can see Saint Joseph possessed a great love for God in his obedience in following the message of the angel to take Mary into his house. The obedience to do the will of God in this extraordinary case implies that Saint Joseph must have striven to follow the commandments of God in the ordinary things of daily life.

Obedience to God’s will requires us to know his will for our lives.  In the case of St. Joseph, he knew God’s will through dreams in which the angel of God tells him what to do.  In trust and courage, St. Joseph responds immediately and without delay.  Through his obedience, the savior of the world is born into a loving family that protects him so that he can fulfill God the Father’s plan for his life, which is the salvation of each and every one of us.

But you may be saying to yourself, how do I know what God’s will is for my life? How can I seek to do his will if I don’t know what I am supposed to do?  These are fair questions.  The search for God and the desire to do his will is a lifelong endeavor, but we do not have to guess what God’s plan for our lives is.  He loves us and wants to spend eternity with us.  He wants to walk with us in this life, as Mary and Joseph did with Jesus, in the good times and the bad, in the quiet moments, in our sufferings, and in our joys.  So, if his plan seems unknown to us, all we need to do is ask him. 

There may be some of us who know God’s plan for our life, but we are placing obstacles in the way.  We are afraid, we have an addiction, we have our own plan, we are running away from God’s love.  Now is the time to surrender.  Now is the time to hand over our lives to God through the intercession of St. Joseph.

Maybe the obstacles to being just and loving obeying God’s will involve sin.  Now is the time to ask God for forgiveness and start anew. In the words of absolution, God brings us back into recognition of his total, faithful, and undying love for us.  When we are forgiven, we can begin to heal, and we can begin to love ourselves and others with the love of God in the depth of our soul.

Let us lay all our shortcomings, our failures, and our fears at the feet of Jesus through the intercession of his earthly Father.  This complete surrender will enable us to open our hearts and minds to God’s loving presence in our lives and learn to love as he loves. 

Pray the Litany of St. Joseph, found in the prayers button of myParish App. Spend a few moments in silent reflection.  In that moment, speak to God from your heart.  Ask him to show you his will for your life.  Ask him for his forgiveness.  Ask him to help you name the obstacle, the self-righteous tendency that you have that keeps you from his love and from obediently loving him.  When you pray the litany, ask St. Joseph, your spiritual father, and Terror of Demons, to intercede for you to your Heavenly Father.  Ask St. Joseph to show you how to be righteous and obedient and live in the intimacy of God’s love

St. Joseph, righteous and obedient, pray for us.

Deacon Scott A. Root
Pastoral Associate
St. Katharine Drexel Parish
Mechanicsburg, PA 17050

We don’t really have a clear picture of St. Joseph’s life. He is mentioned directly only in the birth and childhood stories in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. Mark never mentions him and John only refers to him twice and then indirectly when he calls Jesus the “Son of Joseph”. We know that Joseph was alive and involved in the life of Jesus’ early life, at least up until the time that Jesus was found in the Temple in Jerusalem listening to the teachers and asking them questions and astounding them with his understanding and answers as written in Mark’s Gospel. Biblical scholars are certain that St. Joseph died well before the public life of Jesus.

I think that the significance of St. Joseph and why he is so revered is given to us in the Gospel from Matthew. Mary was betrothed to Joseph before she “was found with child through the Holy Spirit”. By the custom of those days, a betrothal was a significantly more sacred bond than an engagement is today. This bond was legally as strong as marriage except they lived apart and had no conjugal relations and the woman’s parents were still responsible for her care and support. Marriage was the final seal upon the bond. So if you wanted to terminate or end a betrothal, the process was very similar to a formal legal divorce. Again, referring to the cultural norms of that time, a woman betrothed but not married who became pregnant, had committed a serious sin and an unforgivable social and moral transgression. Joseph could by law, have Mary stoned or cast out from the community. But what did Joseph do? As we heard in the Gospel, “since he was a righteous man yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. But then an angel of God appeared to him in a dream and said, Joseph, Son of David, 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.” Joseph, being a man of great faith, did as the Angel of God had instructed him. It was Joseph’s faithful response to God that was most significant.

We can reflect on Joseph’s faith and devotion to Mary as we continue our journey through Lent. Recall that we are called to prayer, repentance, and almsgiving. Joseph had a great love for Mary but also God and through that love, he had the courage to do as instructed and to dismiss the possible family and community disgrace that faced both him and Mary.

We can look to Joseph for inspiration and courage to live our faith as Jesus has instructed us to do. That is why it is so important for each of us to form a personal and intimate relationship with the Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit through prayer and reflection, taking advantage of the Sacraments, especially the Sacrament of Reconciliation or confession. You will hear me shout the need for regular confession until my last breath is drawn. Many Catholics, including myself, did not go to confession out of fear or a lack of a clear understanding of the Sacrament. We humans sin. We all have crosses to carry and some of those crosses cause us to sin and sometimes those sins are what the Church refers to as grave or mortal sins. Whatever the sin we commit or the cross we bear, it inflicts injury to our relationship with God. People who don’t understand the true essence of the Sacrament often take the position that they confess their sins to Jesus directly and He (Jesus) knows they are sorry and are forgiven. Except that Jesus gave the power to forgive on earth to the Apostles and their successors. It is through the act of going to a priest and confessing our sins and being truly sorry that we are absolved of our sins and we receive Sanctifying Grace that heals the wounds of sin and strengthens us against the evil one who is always looking to steal our soul. If you have not been to confession for some time, for whatever reason, pray for the strength to go and fully reunite yourself with the Triune God. In my case, and I think in everyone’s case, the Sacrament of Reconciliation along with frequent Holy Communion is the healing and bonding agents that solidify our personal and intimate relationship with God. To have that relationship allows us the ability to be guided by the Holy Spirit. 

Like Joseph who trusted God and the message he was given through the Angel of God, we too must have the faith and courage to love God and others and to respond to God’s will so that we can achieve the ultimate goal in our lives, eternal salvation.

God Bless and continue to build that personal and intimate relationship with God.
AND GET TO CONFESSION SOON!

~Deacon Jim Nelson
St. Joseph, Battle Creek, Mi

We know very few details about the life of Saint Joseph.  He is mentioned four times in the New Testament, and two of those times (Luke 3:23 and John 1:45) are only in passing.  Joseph plays a significant role only in the first two chapters of Matthew and of Luke, and those chapters are far more theological than historical.  In Luke Joseph plays a background role (best supporting actor?) to Mary and Jesus.  Matthew portrays a more active Joseph, and on that Joseph, I offer these reflections.

Matthew patterns Saint Joseph after the stories of Joseph in the Book of Genesis.  In Genesis God spoke to Joseph in dreams; likewise in Matthew.  In Genesis Joseph eventually brings his family into Egypt and saves them from death; likewise in Matthew.  The evangelist whom we call Matthew is not a historian or a biographer.  He is not writing a life of Jesus, let alone one of Joseph.  He is simply an early Jewish Christian trying to share his understanding of the mystery of Jesus.  What does Matthew’s Joseph tell us about Jesus and about our response to him?

Prayerfully read the first two chapters of Matthew, taking time with each part:  the genealogy, the first dream, the visit of the sages, the second dream, the killing of the babies, the third dream, the return to Israel.  The evangelist presents a Joseph who encapsulates the whole people of Israel, from Sarah and Abraham down to the time of Jesus.  Matthew’s Joseph is an upright person, faithful to the God of his ancestors.  Matthew has God speak to Joseph in dreams; and Joseph, though he might not fully understand, obeys God.  He accepts Mary as his wife and her child as his son.  He takes Mary and Jesus to Egypt, thereby saving the child from Herod’s wrath.  After Herod’s death, he returns with his family to the land of Israel (although not to his hometown of Bethlehem but to a new home in Nazareth).  Then he disappears from the scene, and we never see him again.

What does Matthew’s portrayal of Joseph tell us?  I see someone whose life is open to God.  How open to God are we?  Do we hear God speak to us in Sacred Scripture? in our tradition? in our life experiences? in our dreams?  How open and alert are we to God’s presence?  Do we listen for God’s call?  How do we respond?  Even if the evangelist doesn’t say so, the Joseph whom Matthew presents has to be a person of prayer, a person whose heart remains open to God, a person open to obeying God even when God’s call does not make sense.  Matthew’s Joseph lived in the presence of God … and without denying the divinity of Christ, in this case, I am not referring to Jesus.

What does prayer mean?  I think that it means living, like Joseph, in the presence of God.  Prayer can be formal or informal, public or private, verbal or silent.  We can pray in our own words or in those of others.  We can set aside time for deliberate, conscious contact with God, and we can experience God’s presence in the unplanned events of daily life.  Most of us need all those kinds of prayer.  If I don’t set aside time for deliberate contact with God, I am not likely to find God in the rest of my life.  If I don’t find God in unexpected experiences, my formal prayer is likely to be hollow.  For example, if I don’t find God in a homeless person, I am not likely to find God at Mass.  Likewise, unless I allow God to change me at Mass, I am not likely to see God in a homeless person.

Prayer is listening.  We come to God in prayer with the whole gamut of human experience—family relationships, health concerns, financial security, sexual desires, etc.  We need to bring all those things to God in prayer.  Otherwise, they are going to create background noise and keep us from hearing what God wants to say.  Once we’ve brought our issues and concerns to God, however, we need to put them aside, quiet ourselves, and let God speak.  We have to allow our little egos to recede into the background and open our lives to the ultimate reality that is God.  God’s voice may not always be clear and distinct, and our response may be awkward and confused.  We may have to change course more than once.  The Joseph whom Matthew depicts would have experienced the same—after all, dreams are sometimes more confusing than clear!  A faithful Jew, he would have lived in God’s presence.  That is why we call him Saint Joseph.

Loren Connell, OFM, is a Franciscan friar and Catholic priest ministering in retirement at St Francis Retreat House in Easton, Pennsylvania.

I want to reflect with you on a scene in the Gospel of Matthew.  It speaks to the character of Joseph, a man, a husband, and the foster father of the Savior.  It is also a profound insight into the intimacy of marriage:

This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was
betrothed to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with child
through the Holy Spirit.  Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man,
yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly.
Such was his intention when behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him
in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, 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.  She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus
because he will save his people from their sins.”  All this took place to fulfill
what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall be with
child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which means
“God is with us.”  When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home. Matthew 1:18-25

One can imagine Joseph’s grief as Mary shares with him that she is pregnant.  Without averting her gaze from his, she tells him of the apparition of the angel.  She shares all that was disclosed to her, and her assent to all that was asked of her.  Her own body has informed her that she is now “with child.”  The clarity that was always in Mary’s eyes when she spoke with him – a clarity that drew him to love her – was still there, somehow more deeply penetrated by his gaze than ever before.  Yet as he faced her and listened to her words, only one fact flings itself back and forth, wildly in his mind:  the child, he knows, is not his.  The grief of this is unbearable.  Yet it is without anger, bitterness, or rancor.  Joseph was a “just” man.  The only solution he could comprehend was to distance himself from the pain.  He would separate from her quietly.

The night after, an angel penetrates his troubled sleep.  The apparition confirms two points:  this child is miraculously “generated of God,” and he is to be named, “Jesus.”  There is no way that Joseph can even begin to comprehend the meaning of “Son of the Most High,” nor can he fathom the salvation this child will be from the bondage of sin that plagues his ancient race.  But the Truth, now confirmed by the angel, sets him free! (John 8:32)   The pain at the loss of a child “of my own,” is released and falls away.  He rises and hastens to find Mary – not to take a pregnant woman into his home, not to take a fatherless child into his care, but to take custody of Mary’s faith.  He finds himself aware again of what he has always known:  her faith is pure.  Why is it shocking to him that Mary’s faith should be fertile – as fertile is his own?   Taking custody of her faith in God, he can now penetrate the depth of her faith in him – her husband..  He offers his assent and becomes spouse to her faith.  Looking into his eyes, she returns the assent and completes the vow, taking custody of his faith in God.  In this, they become spouse to each other, parent to their child, and suitable partners to the joys and sorrows of the vocation God has given them. 

Between Joseph and Mary, Marriage is redefined for every Christian from that day forward: 

“I will take custody of your faith in God.  I will become partner to all that your faith will ask of you.  We will become one in the only thing that can fill this life and that will endure into the next.”

The depth of human intimacy with another is always found in God

Fr. Jim Chelich
St. Thomas the Apostle Parish
Grand Rapids, MI 49506

On January 19th, my family and I observed the one-year anniversary of the passing of my dad. It was an opportunity to reflect on the role he had in my life and the realization that dad really does matter. He taught me many things about life but the most important thing he passed on to me was the importance of having and growing my relationship with my Heavenly Father. 

The impact of the father on the spiritual lives of his family is critically important. Studies have shown that when men are active in the spiritual development of their children, they are much more likely to remain involved in a life of faith. It doesn’t take much of a look around to realize that we men have failed in our duties. Our children and their children are leaving churches of all types in droves. The level of spiritual development and engagement among our young adults and teens does not paint a pretty picture for the future. 

Perhaps it is time to step back and look at a role model we can all aspire to imitate. St. Joseph is the role model that all fathers should follow. His humble obedience to the will of the Heavenly Father is a shining example of what we as fathers and grandfathers are called to emulate. He was thrust into a role that would be hard to comprehend. Betrothed to a young woman probably in her mid-teens, St. Joseph has to deal with her pregnancy and the explanation that followed. Not wanting to disgrace or endanger her, he seeks to quietly divorce her. An angel of the Lord appears to let him know what he needs to do. He trusts that this is a duty that has been given to him, to raise this Son of God. 

We don’t know much about the life of St. Joseph, but we can see the results in his work. Jesus is raised by a man who teaches him a craft and lives the life faith he was called to live. St. Joseph was his guide, his mentor not only in his learning a skill but in teaching him the faith of God’s chosen people. He trusted the will of God and lived out as an example to Jesus. 

What St. Joseph shows and teaches us is the act of having a simple trust in God. He showed the strength of his character was in that trust. This is something all of us could work on. We don’t always know where we’re going but we know if we seek the will of the Father, we’ll get where we’re supposed to be. I suspect St. Joseph relied on that principle. Trust is a hard thing to develop especially when we don’t always see the results. I believe that this trust was further developed in St. Joseph’s life of prayer. It’s hard to develop trust without taking time to get to know someone. Prayer is that way in which we come to know God so we can develop that trust like St. Joseph.

In this year of St. Joseph, take some time in prayer to ask him to help guide you as he did Jesus. That is especially true for those fathers and grandfathers out there. Become that spiritual leader you are called to be. Show your children and grandchildren the importance of coming to know the Heavenly Father. Tell them the story of St. Joseph and his great trust in God. It’ll be a good lesson for them. 

Deacon Dave Profitt
Director, St. Anne Retreat Center
Melbourne, KY. 41058
www.stanneretreatcenter.org

During my last year of Seminary, I spent a week with a Benedictine community just outside of Boston, about an hour’s drive outside of Boston.  These Benedictines lived on an old retired Dairy farm.  They used to make their living by milking cows, but the cows were gone when I got there.  They make their living now by writing and selling spiritual material and hosting retreats.  But they still live on that beautiful old farm in a big ramshackle farmhouse.  I had a beautiful week.  I got to pray with the brothers, go to Mass with the brothers, and eat with the brothers.  All meals were in silence and while we ate we listened to one of the brothers read a book.  When I was there they were making their way through a history book.  Then we listened to a few of the rules written by St. Benedict.  

After dinner, every one helped to clean up.  Then it was off to recreation.  For them, recreation meant eating ice cream and cookies.  Not a bad recreation.  Now when I got to the monastery the brothers warned me, “Stay away from brother Oswald,” they would then point him out, “He’ll corner you and he’ll talk your ear off, he does that to all visitors, stay away from him.”  And more than one brother told me this.  And so of course I did get cornered by Brother Oswald, I got cornered many times, and he did talk a lot and I mostly listened not being able to get a word in, but he was a very kind old man.    From that week I only remember one conversation.  Only one out of many.

In that conversation he said; remember that gospel passage where the mother of James and John goes to Jesus and asks him, “Command that these two sons of mine sit, one at your right and the other at your left, in your kingdom.”  And Jesus says to her, “It’s not mine to give, my Father decides that.”  Brother Oswald then says to me, “I know who sits to the right and left of Jesus.”  “His parents sit there, Mary and Joseph sit to the right and left of Jesus.”  Now I’ve never read this anywhere else in a book of theology or heard it from a theologian, but it is a nice thought, and when we look at our churches we do see images of Mary and Joseph on left and right of the tabernacle.  And they are powerful intercessors on our behalf.  In that gospel passage that Brother Oswald referred to, Jesus asked James and John if they were willing to drink the chalice that he was going to drink, to drink the cup of sorrow.  They say yes and they did, but so did Mary and Joseph, they too drank the cup of sorrow.  

Today’s gospel relates to us the first sorrow of Joseph, a very painful human moment.  Joseph is betrothed, he’s betrothed to a woman he loves and he assumes that she loves him right back.  But then the marriage has to be called off, and the reason is an irregular pregnancy, he’s not the father.  Think of the embarrassment and the social awkwardness.  Here’s the woman he loves and she’s pregnant and he’s not the father.  What must he have felt in his heart:  betrayal of infidelity, unrequited love, all the painful psychological stuff of the heart.  And to the spiritual question too, Joseph was a religious man, he must have asked himself, “Where are you, God? Why is this happening?  Why is this happening to me?”    

Now here is the beautiful thing about Joseph, with all this psychological, spiritual, and social trauma going on in his heart, his first thought is of Mary and not himself.  He thinks first of her and not himself, even in the midst of this trauma it’s her he thinks of first.  He’s unwilling to expose her to shame, as we heard he planned to quietly divorce her.  But then the Angel reveals everything.  This seemingly hopeless situation is part of a much richer Divine plan.  And the great virtue of Joseph is that at this key moment he is willing to surrender to a plan and purpose beyond what he can see.  There are still questions and it’s not clear how it’s all going to work out, but he surrenders.  In his great faith and trust in God, he plows ahead with the painful task he’s been given, knowing it’s part of a bigger plan he can’t fully understand.  In his faith, he has a passion for the seemingly impossible.

This statue behind me used to sit above the side altar of my home parish of Sacred Heart in Imlay City.  Now the original church building was torn down in 1972 and Fr. Dunn was giving away many of the church items for a donation.  So my mom gave a five-dollar donation for this statue of St. Joseph.  This statue sat in the corner of the bedroom I shared with my two brothers for the next 15 years.  And I’m surprised that we never broke it.  We would stand on the base and dance with St. Joseph, dress him up in my dad’s shirts and do all sorts of things to him.  And if I were to wake up in the middle of the night he’d be there staring at me, sometimes that was startling.  Now for all those 15 years that Joseph sat in the corner of my bedroom one thing that I unwittingly meditated upon was the closeness of St. Joseph to Jesus. Every day for all those years I meditated on St. Joseph’s close relationship to Jesus.   Joseph always held Jesus close to his heart.  Joseph lived 24/7 with Jesus.  He was with Jesus at home, sharing with him all the mundane and ordinary things of family life.   He was with Jesus at work, teaching him a trade bringing him into all the intricacies of the business world.   He was with Jesus at worship, they went to the temple together, and Joseph taught him the prayers and customs of the Jewish people.  And finally, he was with Jesus when he died; dying in the arms of Jesus. He watched Jesus, he worked with Jesus, he prayed with Jesus, and he adored Jesus, and at the end he died with Jesus at his side.  

To imitate Joseph is to keep the faith even in the midst of contradiction, to imitate Joseph is to keep Jesus close to the heart in the home, the workplace, in worship, and to do of all of these things we know that at the end we will die with Jesus.  For all of these, we pray.  For all of these, our Patron St. Joseph prays on our behalf.  

~Fr. Christopher J. Ankley
St. Joseph, Battle Creek Mi.
Solemnity of St. Joseph (A) St. Joseph ‘17
Matthew 1: 16, 18-21, 24a