The Catholic Church as always fostered a strong devotion to St. Joseph as the head of the Holy Family, yet he has become increasingly prominent in the spiritual life of the Church over the past 150 years as Patron of the Universal Church.
Here’s a look at why St. Joseph is so important to our faith and the Church:
Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ chose to enter the world through the human family. He came as an infant born into the marriage and home of the two holiest people who ever lived: Joseph and Mary.
Because of his special role as foster-father of Jesus, St. Joseph has merited singular privileges in heaven unmatched by any saint except the Blessed Virgin Mary. There is no greater model than St. Joseph from whom we can learn how to live virtuously in imitation of Jesus and Mary.
Certain saints have received special insight into his holiness and the wonderful power of his heavenly intercession.
“Devotion to St. Joseph is one of the choicest graces that God can give to a soul, for it is tantamount to revealing the entire treasury of our Lord’s graces,” wrote St. Peter Julian Eymard, “When God wishes to raise a soul to greater heights, he unites it to St. Joseph by giving it a strong love for the good saint.”
Read more testimonies about the power of St. Joseph’s intercession at www.yearofstjoseph.org.
Also on the website during this Year of St. Joseph, some of the saint’s titles and patronages – as listed in the Litany of St. Joseph – are being explored more deeply as monthly themes:
- January – Most Valiant Protector of Church
- February – Joseph Most Chaste
- March – Joseph Most Just
- April – Lover of Poverty
- May – Model of Workers
- June – Joseph Most Obedient and Head of Holy Family
- July – Joseph Most Faithful
- August – Mirror of Patience
- September – Joseph Most Prudent
- October – Terror of Demons
- November – Patron of Dying and Solace of the Afflicted
- December – Chaste Guardian of Virgins and Pillar of Families
St. Joseph is most well known as the patron saint of fathers, families and workers. However, he is in fact efficacious over many causes.
As St. Thomas Aquinas once noted, “Some saints are privileged to extend to us their patronage with particular efficacy in certain needs, but not in others; but our holy patron St. Joseph has the power to assist us in all cases, in every necessity, in every undertaking.”
Throughout history many of the Church’s sons and daughters have successfully gone to St. Joseph for various needs. As a result, St. Joseph has become known for his intercession for the following professions and causes: against doubt, against hesitation, accountants and bursars, attorneys, cabinetmakers and carpenters, cemetery workers and grave diggers, children, civil engineers, confectioners, craftsmen, dying people and for a happy and holy death, educators, immigrants and exiles, furniture makers, house hunters, interior souls, laborers, married people,
orphans, people in doubt, people who fight Communism, pioneers, pregnant women, social justice, teachers, travelers, unborn children, and working people.
— Catholic News Herald
Don’t miss this!
St. Joseph Vietnamese Church in Charlotte is offering a Votive Mass of St. Joseph every first Wednesday of the month at 6 p.m. The next Mass will be offered Wednesday, Feb. 5.
The parish also welcomes you to join in special prayers to St. Joseph in front of its St. Joseph Shrine, located in front of the church, every third Saturday at 8 p.m. The next prayer vigil will be held Saturday, Feb. 15.
St. Joseph Vietnamese Church is located at 4929 Sandy Porter Road in south Charlotte.
More online
At www.yearofstjoseph.org: Find educational resources, prayers and devotions, and “Year of St. Joseph” event details from across the diocese, as dates for special events are finalized.