Hail Joseph, Son of David, God is with you.
Blessed are you amongst men, and blessed is
Our Lord Jesus Christ! Holy Joseph, Guardian of the Redeemer,
pray for us and be with us now and as we sigh our last breath. + Amen.
1) St Joseph Resolves to Leave Mary Finding Blessed Mary to be pregnant, and knowing that he was not the father, St Joseph was wounded to his inmost heart by an arrow of grief…The most intimate cause of his sorrow, and which gave him the deepest pain, was the dread of being obliged to deliver over his spouse to the authorities to be stoned (Lev. 20, 10), for this was the punishment of an adulteress convicted of the crime. The heart of St Joseph, filled with these painful considerations, found itself as it were exposed to the thrusts of many sharp-edged swords, without any other refuge than the full confidence which he had in his Spouse. – Venerable Maria de Agreda
Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not
willing publicly to expose her, was minded to put her away privately. – St
Matthew 1:19
2) The Poverty of Jesus’ Birth And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him up
in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for
them in the inn. – St Luke 2:7
It was nine o’clock at night when
the most faithful Joseph, full of bitter and heartrending sorrow, returned to
Mary and said: “My sweetest Lady my heart is broken with sorrow at the thought
of not being able to shelter thee as thou deserves...” – Ven Maria de Agreda
3) The Piercing of Mary’s Soul And Simeon blessed
them, and said to Mary: Behold this child is set for the fall, and for the
resurrection of many in Israel, and for a sign which shall be contradicted; And
thy own soul a sword shall pierce, that, out of many hearts, thoughts may be
revealed. – St Luke 2:34-35
As the most faithful Joseph loved the Blessed Virgin
so much, and as he was of a kind and solicitous disposition, he was troubled to
see his spouse so tearful and afflicted… This disturbance of his soul was one
of the reasons why the holy angels spoke to him in sleep, (to comfort
him.) – Venerable
Maria de Agreda
4) The Exile into Egypt Behold, an angel of
the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Rise, take the child and
his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is
about to search for the child, to destroy him." And he rose and took the
child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt and remained there until
the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the
prophet, "Out of Egypt I called my son." - St. Matthew 2:13-15
How much St Joseph
must have suffered on the journey into Egypt in seeing the sufferings of Jesus
and Mary! … Joseph was indeed conformed in all things to the will of the
Eternal Father, but his tender and loving heart could not but feel pain in
seeing the Son of God trembling and weeping from cold and the other hardships
which He experienced on that hard journey. - St Alphonsus Liguori
5) Loss of the Child Jesus When
Jesus was twelve years old, they went to Jerusalem, according to the custom of
the Pasch, and having fulfilled the days, when they returned, the child Jesus
remained in Jerusalem; and his parents knew it not. And thinking
that he was in the company, they came a day's journey, and sought him among
their kinsfolks and acquaintance. And
not finding him, they returned into Jerusalem, seeking him. – St Luke 2:41-45
Most holy Mary and St Joseph found themselves … overwhelmed
with self-reproach at their remissness in watching over their most holy Son and
thus blamed themselves for his absence… and with deepest sorrow took counsel
with each other as to what was to be done. – Venerable Maria de Agreda
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