March 19
SOLEMNITY OF ST. JOSEPH,
SPOUSE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
& PATRON OF THE UNIVERSAL CHURCH
Summary AV + full text

On March 19 the Universal Church will celebrate the Solemnity of Her Patron, St. Joseph, the Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and Guardian of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

St Joseph was chosen by God to be the foster-father of Our Lord Jesus Christ and the Spouse of Our Lady, in spite of his silence and hidden presence — nowhere in the Gospels we can find him talk— is THE GREATEST SAINT AFTER THE VIRGIN MARY.

HIS GREATNESS PRECISELY RESIDES IN THE FACT THAT HE WAS THE PERSON WHO LOVED JESUS AND OUR LADY MOST THAN ANY OTHER CREATURE. He gave them his life, his love, his virile tenderness and care; he protected them with his strong arms, he gave them all of himself and all that he could without reserve.

A man with a firm faith in God coupled with a resilient personality, who did not complain and was not appalled nor distressed in the midst of trials and tribulations, St. Joseph knew how to face, carry and solve the burden of his vocation, of life’s difficulties and responsibilities with serenity, with complete faith and love, entrusting himself totally and unconditionally to God’s plans.

He is the patron of fathers, spouses, priests and seminarians. But above all, St. Joseph is the “Master of Interior Life” who is willing to teach us by his silent example how to love God faithfully and tenderly, and Our Lady as well.

“Love Saint Joseph a lot. Love him with all your soul, because he, together with Jesus, is the person who has most loved our Blessed Lady and been closest to God. He is the person who has most loved God, after our Mother.

He deserves your affection, and it will do you good to get to know him, because he is the Master of the interior life, and has great power before the Lord and before the Mother of God (St. Josemaria, “Forge”, n. 554).”

Dear friends, “Joseph’s self-giving is an interweaving of faithful love, loving faith and confident hope. His feast is thus a good opportunity for us to renew our commitment to the Christian calling God has given each of us (St. Josemaria, “Christ is Passing By”, n. 43).”

To you, St. Joseph, we entrust our vocation and our interior life so that with your help, we may learn to love Jesus and the Blessed Virgin Mary the way you did while on earth.

We pray to God through your powerful intercession for all the fathers and spouses in the world so that they may imitate you in your faith, love and fidelity to God and your family.

We entrust to you as well all the families in the world so that they may imitate the virtues lived by the Holy Family of Nazareth and become its faithful image.

Through your intercession, may God shower more vocations to His Church, especially the vocation to priesthood, and may all priests and future priests strive be holy, faithful and apostolic ministers of Christ.

Cordially inviting you to like, follow our FB page www.facebook.com/CatholicsstrivingforHoliness and share our posts so we could help more people in their Catholic faith and life. Thanks and God bless! Fr. Rolly Arjonillo

PHOTO SOURCE: www.jasonjenick.com https://www.altesses.eu/imgmax/9c2d8e0d04.jpg https://catholicsstrivingforholiness.files.wordpress.com/2017/03/705b1-san2bjose.jpg  http://vultus.stblogs.org/Guerra%20St%20Joseph%20et%20la%20Trinite%201699.jpg

AUDIO SOURCE: “Te Ioseph celebrant” from gloria.tv. Choir unknown.