AS THE LITURGICAL calendar turns over to March, our attention moves to devotion to St. Joseph. The devotions and the feast day on March 19 gain greater significance as Pope Francis had dedicated this year in honour of St. Joseph. The Collect of the feast day Mass of March 19 beautifully summarises of the meaning of Church’s devotion to the custodian of the divine Son: “Grant, we pray, almighty God, that by St. 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.”
St. Joseph was the chosen man on a mission of a protector – in the Hollywood terminology – ‘an agent of God’. While declaring the Year of St. Joseph, in his apostolic letter, Patris Corde (With a Father’s Heart), Pope Francis deliberated on the virtues and qualities of this ‘agent of God’, the man whom the heaven trusts! His mission continues as the protector of the universal Church—just as he guarded Mary and the Child Jesus, today he also stands as guard over the Body of Christ, the Church.
The vigilant guardian of the Holy Family protected with diligence both the Mother and the Child from all ignominy and threats to life; led them to strange lands and cared for them amidst all the hostile circumstances. The Holy Family is a prototype of the universal Church, which is often confronted with crises and vicious attacks by the powers of Satan that are in constant war with God and his Church. Invoking the mighty patronage of St. Joseph, at a time when a global pandemic has forced millions to live in fear and isolation, is our chance to knock on the doors of heaven through someone who understands our pains and struggles.
Every husband and father assumes the role of the guardian and provider of his family. If you are a young parent who is looking for best practices on being a good husband and father, find time to meditate on the life and mission of St. Joseph in the Holy Family while not forgetting to surrender your family to his paternal protection, especially in this month of March.
St. Joseph is also the model for all the workers. We are encouraged to imitate the disposition with which Joseph approached his profession. People identified him and even Jesus by his profession: “Son of the carpenter”. Love what you do and do it with passion and commitment. The day when you feel that what you do is your job, it is better to quit! If you are teacher, be a passionate teacher; the day you consider teaching as a job, you might just be fulfilling a responsibility without loving your profession.
Virgil has left us a well-known phrase: “fortune favours the bold.” Some say that God himself helps the brave! Sometimes it is the difficulties, challenges and trials that bring out of us our best energies and abilities to succeed, even those we did not even suspect we might have. Perhaps that is what happened to St. Joseph. He was daring and audacious in accepting a Mary as his wife, in journeying with her to Bethlehem, in fleeing to a foreign country with his wife and new-born child as a refugee and making a living there for many years.
This month of March invites us to learn from St. Joseph to hone our skills in making decisions and taking risks in life. jose CMF
