My husband and I have experienced two deaths in the past eight months, an older sibling in each family. Reflecting on death and the power of prayer makes me so grateful for the Catholic Church family. Whenever I ask for prayers, dozens of you respond immediately offering Masses and rosaries and who knows what other acts of charity for the requested needs? I thank you from the bottom of my heart!
Thinking of and praying for St. Joseph's assistance is a great way to start the month of May, especially with the upcoming conclave to elect a new pope beginning on May 7th. St. Joseph served the little domestic Church of the Holy Family as its head. He guards the universal Church.
Some Catholics erroneously believe that the Holy Ghost chooses the pope. If that were true, one would have to wonder how competent He is in view of the number of corrupt, licentious and just plain bad popes that have filled the chair of Peter over the centuries. NO! The cardinals don't lose their free well when the doors of the conclave are locked. And anyone with open eyes saw the machinations behind the election of Jorge Bergoglio. The St. Gallen Mafia certainly didn't gather to pray the novena to the Holy Ghost for the next pope. They gathered as liberal church politicians intent on electing their man to turn the Catholic faith into one more modernist Protestant sect.
During my prayer time this morning, I was thinking about St. Joseph and what an appropriate day this is to thank him. He prayed, worked, suffered, and protected his precious family entrusted to him by God. What a model for all fathers who pray and work, suffer and protect their families. My husband's confirmation name is Joseph. He has three great saints watching over him. St. Lawrence, who suffered an agonizing torture for the faith who considered the poor his family. When the tyrannical authorities demanded he bring the treasures of the church, he presented the poor, God's little ones.
My daily spiritual reading for several months has included a few pages from the wonderful book, The Life and Glories of St. Joseph. I never realized how much the Church knows about this silent saint of the Scriptures. The Fathers of the Church and the Mystics all cast light on St. Joseph giving us a stunning portrait of his life and virtues. As patron of the universal Church and the "pillar of families," St. Joseph offers us his powerful intercession. All we have to do is ask for it.
Here's a brief thought about this great and powerful saint from the book which I heartily recommend if you want to know more about him.:
Well, actually, our overlords aren't lunatics, but minions of Lucifer. This morning, I learned that a Canadian priest who teaches at the SSPX seminary in Dillwyn, VA (St. Thomas Aquinas) is being deported, I think tomorrow. We know him because he occasionally offers Mass and hears Confessions at our chapel in Linden. The government flunkies won't allow him to renew his visa. Bishop Fellay, who lives at the seminary, is in the same boat, but his deportation is less imminent.
Think about that for a minute.
Part of my morning prayer time lately is reading from The Life and Glories of Saint Joseph. I'm on the chapter on the Journey to Bethlehem. Two short passages really struck me this morning. The first related to scripture about the birth of the Messiah.
Mary was reared in the temple and must have known the prophecies well. She and Joseph both must have realized that Bethlehem was going to be the birthplace of Jesus. And yet, they stayed in Nazareth waiting to see how God would bring it about.
...we find them remaining on at Nazareth without doubt or question. If this surprises us, it is only because the strength of their faith and their complete abandonment to the leadings of God's Providence are beyond our shallow perception. God would know how to bring about His will in the manner He pleased, and they left all in His hands.
And, of course, we know God used Caesar Augustus to bring about His will.
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| Bartolome Esteban Murillo |
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| Thank you, St. Joseph, for showing fathers how to be dutiful dads! |
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| Childhood of Christ by 16th c. painter Gerrit van Honthorst, from the Hermitage, St. Petersburg |
He's the quiet man of Christmas isn't he? We read in Luke that Caesar Augustus calls for a census and that all the men have to go to their town of origin and St. Joseph is of the House of David which requires him to go to Bethlehem. But we hear not one word about what Joseph thought or said. We just know he took Mary and went to Bethlehem where they were turned away from the inn and ended up in a stable or a cave where the animals were kept. What did Joseph and Mary talk about on that long journey to Bethlehem? When they camped at night and looked up at the starlit skies what did they think? We know that Mary pondered things in her heart so they probably didn't prattle on about nothing and I seriously doubt they were gossiping about their neighbors. Did they talk about the mystery of what was happening? Or were they silent like I am when I sit before the monstrance at adoration? What did St. Joseph say to Jesus as He grew? What did they talk about in the carpenter shop as Joseph showed Jesus how to use the tools? What funny stories did he tell? Did he describe the patriarchs and make animal noises when he told Jesus about Noah and the ark?
