I know St. Joseph’s feast day is not until March 19, but since this is the only day in the month of March I get to post here, I just have to write a few words in his honor right now. Hey, what can I say, I really love this guy.
I call Joseph of Nazareth the “Shadow Saint” because, even though his life was so quiet and unknown, he was still responsible for being foster-father to the God-man and husband to the God-man’s mom, Mary. He had to shelter them, protect them, feed them, provide for them. He married Mary while the cloud of “adultery” (a sin punishable by death) hung over her head. Imagine how incredibly difficult this must have been for him, a “righteous Jew” who followed the law and found himself betrothed to a pregnant woman who was not carrying his child. He must have loved Mary so much and had such great faith.
Then he managed to take her to Bethlehem for the census when she was almost full term. If that were I, I would have been sick to my stomach the whole way, wondering if my wife could make it and if the child would survive. This was an 80-mile trip over rocky and dusty roads and Mary had to ride a donkey. Then, after the baby is born in a dingy stable with smelly animals, he had to hide his wife and Son and run from the maniacal Herod, who wanted the child dead and had ordered his soldiers to find Him so they could kill Him. Imagine the fear and anxiety as you try to avoid detection. Imagine your heart pounding faster and faster at the sound of every hoofbeat or snapping branch. I can’t imagine. Joseph must have had incredible courage.
Back in Nazareth he raised his Boy as any loving and caring father would. He aided the Boy when he took his first steps, held Him on his lap when he fell and scraped his knee causing it to bleed, showed Him how to eat, taught Him how to pray, read the scriptures to Him and tucked Him into bed at night. No-one ever in the history of the world has ever been entrusted with such incredible responsibility. No one in the history of the world could tell Jesus, the God-man, when to go to bed or when to wash His hands for supper or “not to interrupt” if mom or dad was speaking. Yet, we know so little about this just and holy man. What we do know is he saved the Son of God who, in turn, lived long enough to save us all. Oh yeah, he also was married to the Blessed Virgin Mary. He loved her, took care of her, and protected her against all dangers.
There are no writings left behind by Joseph. There are no words that were spoken by him that were ever recorded. We have no idea as to what he might have even looked like. None of that matters, because we do know he was there when God needed him to be there. Last year Pope Francis picked St. Joseph’s Feast Day day to be installed as Pope. This was no coincidence I am sure. Joseph is considered the Protector of the Universal Church. He is also the patron saint of fathers and families. Next to his wife, The Blessed Virgin Mary, he is the greatest of all other saints. Just remember that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, called him, and only him, “dad”. And maybe (I like to think this) the Blessed Mother called him “sweetie” or “hon”.
Hey guys, imagine this. You get up in the morning and your wife says to you, “Good morning sweetie, want some bacon and eggs for breakfast?” You turn and look and the Blessed Virgin Mary is standing there in a housecoat holding two eggs in her hand. That would have happened to only one man in all of history and his name was Joseph. No one, anywhere, ever, was afforded such an honor. No one.
HAPPY FEAST DAY ST.JOSEPH Thanks for being there for your Boy, your wife, and for all of us.
LarryPeterson
Larry is a Catholic/Christian author and blogger and posts weekly commentary. His work has appeared in such publications as Zenit from Rome, Aleteia, New Evangelists, Top Catholic Blogs, Big Pulpit, Catholic365.com and others. His first children's picture book, "Slippery Willie's Stupid, Ugly Shoes" was published in 2011. In 2012, his full-length novel, "The Priest and the Peaches" was released. His second novel, "The Demons of Abadon", was released in the spring of 2016. Larry’s latest novel, “Horizon Homeless” was released in ebook format in May of 2017 and the paperback followed on July 27, 2017. Larry belongs to the Catholic Writer’s Guild, The Catholic Writer’s Society, The Knights of Columbus, and the St. Vincent de Paul Society. He has been an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion for over twenty years bringing communion to the homebound and hospitalized. He lives in Pinellas Park, Florida and his kids and six grandchildren all live within three miles of each other. His first wife died of cancer in 2003. He remarried four years later and became the primary caregiver for his wife, Martha who came down with Non-Hodgins Lymphoma in 2011. The cancer was in remission when she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease in October of 2014. Sadly and unexpectedly, Martha passed away on March 27, 2017. The writer says, "God has me where he needs me and I try my best to make Him proud. Larry’s blog site is http://www.slipperywillie.blogspot.com You can find more at www.larrypeterson-author.com
Kassie—truthfully, I never thought about the bacon and the Jewish thing. In my mind it was just a “can you imagine” kind of thing. But that is so funny Thanks, I needed a laugh.
Loved it….except for the Holy Mother was Jewish, I think Joseph’s eyebrows would have flown off his head if she would have offered up some crispy bacon 🙂
Thank you for sharing a fun, and lively look at St Joe!
Kassie
Thanks for sharing about St. Joseph. He was my first favorite saint. As a child I always thought he was so noble and loving and yet content to remain in the background.