St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Solemnity) ~ 2014

We celebrate the patronage of St. Joseph and the Church asks for his intercession and protection. St. Joseph, the spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the foster-father of Jesus. In God's plan and will, he was destined to become the spouse of the Mother of God. Joseph faithfully accepted the will God obediently and he fulfilled the trust God in him by caring, protecting and guarding God's greatest treasures upon earth, Jesus and Mary. In the gospel, St. Joseph was called to be the husband of Mary and in accepting to do so he was also taking the responsibility to take charge and to protect Jesus as his son. Joseph was not wealthy but he was a silent man, a prudent man, a listener, a compassionate man (Matthew 1:19, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly), a strong man, a courageous man (Matthew 2:13-14, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, .... Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt ....) and he loved Mary and Jesus. The bible does not mentioned about Joseph death, but tradition says that he died some time before the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. St. Joseph has been called the Protector of the Redeemer by Pope John Paul ll.

Liturgical veneration of St. Joseph, started somewhere in 15th century and was fostered by St. Brigid of Sweden and St. Bernadine of Siena. At current time there are two feast day dedicated to St. Joseph, 19 March is to venerate and honour him personally in the role as husband of Mary, the Mother of God and head of the Holy Family, and on 1 May we honour him as St. Joseph the worker (Joseph was a carpenter by trade), the patron of workmen (workers) throughout the world. St. Joseph is also known as the Protector of Virginity, for respecting Mary’s divine motherhood all his life. He was proclaimed the patron of Universal Church by Pope Pius IX on 8 December, 1870.

St. Joseph, the shadow of the Eternal Father upon earth, the protector of Jesus in His home at Nazareth, and a lover of all children for the sake of the Holy Child, should be the chosen guardian and pattern of every true Christian family.

“Saint Joseph is a man of great spirit. He is great in faith, 

not because he speaks his own words, 

but above all because he listens 

to the words of the Living God. 

He listens in silence. 

And his heart ceaselessly perseveres in the readiness 

to accept the Truth contained in the word of the Living God,” 

~ * ~ Pope John Paul II ~ * ~

"Let us allow ourselves to be infected 

by the silence of St. Joseph,

We need it very much, in a world that is often too noisy."

~ * ~ Pope Benedict XVI ~ * ~

Angelus Message on the Feast of St. Joseph, 2006

We ask St. Joseph,

the earthly Guardian of the Blessed Virgin Mary 

and the foster father of Jesus,

to show and teach us to love unconditionally 

and to be good and faithful servants of the Lord.

Grant, we pray, almighty God, that by Saint Joseph's intercession your Church may constantly watch over the unfolding of the mysteries of human salvation, whose beginnings you entrusted to his faithful care. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. AMEN.

Wednesday, 19 March, 2014
St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Solemnity)

Reading 1

2 Samuel 7: 4 - 5, 12 - 14, 16
4	But that same night the word of the LORD came to Nathan,
5	"Go and tell my servant David, `Thus says the LORD: Would you build me a house to dwell in?
12	When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come forth from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.
13	He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever.
14	I will be his father, and he shall be my son. When he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men;
16	And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure for ever before me; your throne shall be established for ever.'"

Psalm

Psalms 89: 2 - 5, 27, 29
2	For thy steadfast love was established for ever, thy faithfulness is firm as the heavens.
3	Thou hast said, "I have made a covenant with my chosen one, I have sworn to David my servant:
4	`I will establish your descendants for ever, and build your throne for all generations.'" [Selah]
5	Let the heavens praise thy wonders, O LORD, thy faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones!
27	And I will make him the first-born, the highest of the kings of the earth.
29	I will establish his line for ever and his throne as the days of the heavens.

Reading 2

Romans 4: 13, 16 - 18, 22
13	The promise to Abraham and his descendants, that they should inherit the world, did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith.
16	That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his descendants -- not only to the adherents of the law but also to those who share the faith of Abraham, for he is the father of us all,
17	as it is written, "I have made you the father of many nations" -- in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.
18	In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations; as he had been told, "So shall your descendants be."
22	That is why his faith was "reckoned to him as righteousness."

Gospel

Matthew 1: 16, 18 - 21, 24
16	and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.
18	Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit;
19	and her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly.
20	But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit;
21	she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."
24	When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took his wife,

or

Luke 2: 41 - 51
41	Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the Passover.
42	And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to custom;
43	and when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it,
44	but supposing him to be in the company they went a day's journey, and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintances;
45	and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking him.
46	After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions;
47	and all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.
48	And when they saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, "Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been looking for you anxiously."
49	And he said to them, "How is it that you sought me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?"
50	And they did not understand the saying which he spoke to them.
51	And he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart.

Prayer

God of Love, 

Joseph was the husband of Mary, 

and you entrusted Jesus to his care. 

I am inspired by his fidelity and integrity 

as your self-sacrificing servant. 

Allow Joseph to offer strength, courage, 

fidelity and tender self-less love 

to all husbands. 

Let this holy family renew in me 

the desire to be your servant, 

faithful in the vocation you have given me.

Amen.