♔ ST. JOSEPH CURES & CONVERTS: THE ANSWERED PRAYERS OF A BABUSHKA ♔

This scene took place in Russia, in a house where all signs of religion had disappeared. Only the Babushka (grandmother) in the upper room had remained faithful to Christ.
 

One day, she took from her hiding-place the icon of St. Joseph and lit two candles, when Michail, her grandson, surprised her in her prayer. The child asked her a thousand questions and expressed interest in all that she told him.

He could not wait to tell his mother that he had prayed to St. Joseph with Babushka. Matryona, a fierce atheist, reacted like a wounded viper. “Little fool, you repeat what old women say. In Russia, there is no longer a Good God; there are no longer saints nor any St. Joseph.” Then in a more calm tone, “Tell me, Michail, have you already seen the Good God? Have you ever met St. Joseph? Has the Infant Jesus ever given you anything? Dear child, those are stories which uneducated old ladies believe. Woe to you if you put faith in what Grandma says. The soldiers will come and take us all as they took Uncle Ivan. Then you will call on God in vain. He won’t be interested in our fate; is that understood?”

Yelissei, the father, watched the scene with inner disquiet. The sounds of troika bells brought him back to reality. Some friends from Matryona’s home country had invited themselves to stay for several days. They were welcomed with proverbial Russian hospitality. Life in this isolated place would be less monotonous. Thanks to the splendid troika, they organized long trips, and the days passed quickly. Then came the feast of St. Joseph, which used to be celebrated with solemnity to the sound of bells.

In the absence of the family and of their guests, Babushka lit some candles before the icon of St. Joseph and prayed to this great saint in union with many Russian hearts that had remained faithful to the faith of their fathers.

The following day Matryona returned with the child, who was ill. In the evening, all of his limbs were shivering. The fever increased, and the parents were distraught. The visitors left and promised to send a doctor from the nearest village. The mother watched at his bedside day and night. When at last the doctor arrived, he could only shake his head and declare the child to be lost. He offered to stay with them, if they wished, until the final and fatal moment. The father accepted this kind offer and they hoped against all hope.

As for Matryona, who was desperate, she went up to her mother-in-law and begged her to light the candles. “I wish to pray with you, Babushka,” she said. “Michail has only a few hours to live. If he recovers, I will believe and never mock again.” She burst into tears and repeated the prayers recited by the old woman. Then, going down again to her little boy and never taking her eyes off of him, she waited, moving her lips as in prayer.

The sick child was delirious and could have died at any moment; but this was not to be. After midnight, Michail became more calm and, little by little, he went off to sleep. At the same time the fever came down. Reassured, the doctor rose and said, “There is nothing more for me to do here. The Devil must have intervened; I cannot explain it otherwise. Good-bye. Be happy!”

Matryona followed the doctor with a detached, lost look. Yelissei, did not understand the behavior of his wife, who said to him, “My dear Yelissei, I don’t know what to say. Go to Mama and she will explain everything to you.” Sobbing, she threw herself on her knees and murmured, “My God, I believe. … St. Joseph, I thank-you.”

After learning what had happened, Yelessei knelt close to his wife and they prayed together. Then he kissed her and went to seek his mother, whose fidelity to the faith had brought about this miracle and the happiness of the family.

The following morning, Michail opened his eyes and looked at his parents in astonishment, then asked for something to eat. His convalescence filled his parents with joy; but even greater was the joy of having once again found the faith.

O holy and righteous Joseph! While yet on earth, you did have boldness before the Son of God, Who was well pleased to call you His father, in that you were the betrothed of His Mother, and Who was well pleased to be obedient to you.

We believe that as you do dwell now in the heavenly mansions with the choirs of the righteous, you are listened to, in all that you do request from our God and Savior. Therefore, fleeing to your protection and defense, we beg and humbly entreat you:

As you, yourself, were delivered from a storm of doubting thoughts, so also deliver us that are tempest-tossed by the waves of confusion and passions;

As you did shield the all-Pure Virgin from the slanders of men, so shield us from all kinds of vehement calumny;

As you did keep the incarnate Lord from all harm and affliction, so also by your defense preserve His Church and all of us from all affliction and harm.

You know, O Saint of God, that even the Son of God had bodily needs in the days of His incarnation, and you did attend to them. Therefore, we beseech you: tend, yourself, to our temporal needs through your intercession, granting us every good thing, which is needful in this life (for the sake of life of the age to come).
 

Especially, do we entreat you to intercede that we may receive remission of our sins from Him Who was called your Son, the only-begotten Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, and be worthy of inheriting the Kingdom of Heaven so that, abiding with you in the heavenly mansions, we may ever glorify the One God in three Persons: the (+) Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and forever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

♔ THE PERFECT CHASTITY OF ST. JOSEPH ♔

By Dom Bernard Marechaux O.S.B: The spirit in St. Joseph was submitted to God in perfect justice, which, actually identified with charity and adorned with the gift of wisdom, made him feel and follow the will of God in all things and made him admirable docile to the guidance of the Holy Ghost. Subsequently, the flesh, in this chosen one of God, was particularly submissive to the spirit: Joseph the just was the most chaste among men.

There is a logical consequence of the spirit’s disposition on the flesh, which is confirmed with the rigor of a law imposed by God Himself. Insofar as the spirit withdraws from the submission it owes to God, the flesh withdraws from the submission it owes to the spirit. Man finds punishment for his pride, which causes him to revolt against God, in the rebellion of his passions which rise up against reason and make him feel ashamed of himself. Fortunate is he when the resulting humiliation, through the direct action of grace which brings good out of evil, contributes to his return to God!

No other man was more just than St. Joseph or more humble in his justice, and no one will ever surpass or even equal him in chastity. The fact that he was chosen by God from the whole of humanity to become the Spouse of Mary, bears witness to a purity brighter than the sun.

Reflect upon this: St. Joseph’s heart was created by God to love the most pure Virgin Mary. Hence, we can hold as certain that even though St. Joseph was conceived with original sin, by a special act of grace, no impure desire ever tainted his heart. (It is correct to believe that as St. John the Baptist was sanctified in his mother’s womb so too was St. Joseph, by the future merits of Jesus Christ.) God grants to certain saints an angelic favor: that concupiscence be extinguished in their flesh. We believe unquestionably that Mary’s future spouse enjoyed such a favor to an eminent degree. He was transported thereafter to the state St. Thomas Aquinas qualified as “the state of a purified soul” whereby earthly lusts are ignored. In short, the chastity of St. Joseph was not a chastity of conflict and struggle, but a chastity which became a part of his nature, very peaceful, as was necessary in order to be entitled to enter into marriage with Mary, the most holy Virgin.

Mary, likewise, found Joseph’s heart in such perfect harmony with hers, that she entrusted herself to him, to remain a virgin in complete security.

God delighted in depicting an image of the chastity of St. Joseph in the person of Joseph of the Old Testament. This great patriarch had an innate horror of impure vice; he resisted the seduction of the wife of his master, the Egyptian Putiphar; he accepted being thrown into prison and being exposed to torture for love of chastity (Genesis 39:7-20). This enlightened soul prefigures that of our St. Joseph.

The chastity of the old Joseph predisposed him to divine communication; he was instructed about the future through mysterious dreams (Genesis 37, 40 & 41). Similarly, related St. Bernard, the new Joseph was made guardian of the celestial secrets of the angels, who were familiar at his bedside (Matthew 1:20-21, 2:13; 2:19-21).

O Saint Joseph, truly angelic and seraphic! O soul elevated above earthly things! O great saint, inspire all those who put their trust in you with chaste and celestial thoughts; obtain for all Christian spouses to unite only under holy intentions. With you, the flesh lived uniquely by the life of the spirit. How truly the lilies of virgins are secure in your hands! May the fragrance of these lilies, which embalm both the heavenly and the earthly Church, instill in us a desire for and love of purity!

♔ ST. JOSEPH HEARS A MOTHER'S CRIES DURING THE FRANCO-PRUSSIAN WAR ♔

During the Franco-Prussian war (1870), after the bloody battle of Patay, an unhappy mother, whose son was a soldier in the French army, went into a church. Her husband had just told her of some sad news: the Prussian Army had refused a pass to a lady they knew who wanted to visit the battlefield in order to collect her husband’s body. “Alas,” said the poor mother, “if our son should die, we won’t even have the consolation of giving him a decent burial.” The anguished mother came to the church in tears to kneel before Immaculate Mary; after a few moments of prayer, she got up and went to the altar of St. Joseph, where she knelt and again shed many tears. All of a sudden, with the bravery and hope that a mother’s love inspires, she took her son’s picture which she carried with her from her pocket and slid it behind the statue of the holy patriarch. “Bring him back to me, St. Joseph,” she cried.

 

St. Joseph heard the cry of the devoted mother. On March 19, 1871, Feast of St. Joseph, the young man, safe and sound, came home to his family. In fulfillment of a sacred vow, the mother of this young man protected by St. Joseph had a white, marble exvoto placed in the chapel where she had wept and prayed, with these words on it: “Glory to good St. Joseph, who preserved a beloved son for his family during the war of 1870 and brought him back safe and sound on March 19, 1871.” That is how St. Joseph, having experienced sorrow in his life on earth, knows how to console the grieving hearts who implore his protection.

♔ THE GREAT DIGNITY OF ST. JOSEPH ♔ – by St. Leonard of Port-Maurice

Text by St. Leonard of Port-Maurice - There is a prophetic figure who embodies the greatness of our saint: according to St. Bernardine, Joseph of the Old Testament represents in the distant past the awe-inspiring prerogatives of Mary’s spouse.

You will remember that extraordinary dream in which the first Joseph saw the sun and the moon and eleven stars bowing down at his feet. (Genesis37:9) This dream was an ecstatic vision sent to Joseph by God Himself to show his imminent rise in rank, and to also point out the future greatness of our saint.

I leave it to you to ponder over the great destiny of the first Joseph who saw not only his family, but all of Egypt, prostrate at his feet.

Almighty God, who could ever begin to fathom it! Do you not think St. Joseph was moved to see Jesus and Mary at his feet, as if they were servants, showing the most loving signs of respect? This is what makes me bold enough to assert that Joseph, in order to become Mary’s spouse, must have been the greatest person to have ever lived, after the Virgin herself. I don’t mean that kind of greatness in which the ambitious boast of their honors to gain the empty respect of men. If you study his lineage you will see that Joseph, not lacking such greatness, could boast of having fourteen kings as ancestors, and as many patriarchs and leaders – none of them as great as he despite their scepters and crowns. According to St. Bernardine of Siena, Joseph came from a line of such illustrious nobility, reaching nearly to the Heavens and including many prophets and patriarchs, that he was able to bestow earthly nobility on the Word Itself.

However it is not because of this greatness that Joseph is praised. If he has dignity in himself, it is not because of the greatness of his ancestors. His identity as a carpenter was as dear to him as the title of prince. The royal scepter was not more important to him than the workman’s hammer. His greatness comes above all from his glorious title: “the just one”. This is what pleases him most; for this he will be admired for all time. All Joseph’s glories are summed up in the eulogy: Joseph was a just man. (St. Matthew 1:19).

If you really want to understand the greatness of St. Joseph as “just”: analyze the word itself. It sums up all the virtues and height of Christian perfection. The holy Father of the Church, St. Maximinus of Turin, tells us the same thing: “Do you wish to know why Joseph is called just? Because he possessed perfectly all the virtues.” What more can one say about a man than to say that he posses all the virtues to a perfect degree? Is this not the highest praise? And who could compare himself in grandeur to Joseph who deserved this praise? Could Adam who, before the fall, appeared with all the animals subject to him? Could Moses who commanded creatures with his rod? Could Abraham surrounded by his descendants like a sun in the midst of stars? Call to mind Josue stopping the sun at the command of his voice; Solomon seeing queens prostrate before his throne; and you, miracle workers, show us how nature obeys your commands. Realize, however, that all these powers cannot make you equal to St. Joseph. For you received these powers and virtues only in part, while Joseph had them all and to a perfect degree.

Humble yourselves then at his feet, all you prophets, patriarchs, apostles, martyrs, miracle workers, all you great ones of Heaven and earth, just as in ancient times the sun and the moon and the stars bowed down to honor the first Joseph.

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If Our Lord Jesus Christ – God-made-man, second Person of the Holy Trinity, Redeemer of the World, and His Blessed Virgin Mother, humbled themselves in the service of the established Head of the Holy Family, why then should we be any different? Let us imitate Our Lord in His absolute humility to be subject to St. Joseph of Nazareth. Are we too proud to honor the man whom God Himself honored as His earthly father? Or even His Blessed Mother? Will we pick and choose what parts of Christ’s life to imitate, or will we surrender ourselves to His entire livelihood? Jesus I trust in You and I trust in honoring those whom You honor, in loving those whom You love.  – J. Rodrigues

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♔ ST. JOSEPH SPARES A YOUNG MOTHER & THE LIFE OF HER UNBORN SON ♔

One day, a young woman, mother of three children, presented herself at the Convent of the Religious of St. Joseph at Bessillon, (Cotignac, France), asking them to pray earnestly for her. In fact, she was expecting a fourth child and was herself affected by a serious illness. The doctors had given up hope and told her that the only way that she could pull through was to have an abortion, that it was either her life or the child’s – and the child’s health could not be guaranteed either. The doctors also added that to have an abortion was her duty as she already had three children to bring up.

Faced with this advice which she struggled with, she went to find a priest, who said to her: “Go for nine days to Mass at St. Joseph’s convent at Bessillon, he will help you.”

She obeyed at once and, ill as she was, she managed to travel more than one hundred and fifty kilometers (93 miles) during the nine consecutive days, to come and make her supplication to St. Joseph at the place of his apparition in 1660.

The child was born at full term, with no defects, and the mother survived the birth. The child is a fine young man of 32 years (2014), very intelligent and full of life. He was followed by two little brothers.

✠ PRAYER TO ST. JOSEPH FOR UNBORN CHILDREN ✠ 

Good St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Protector of Our Lord Jesus Christ, we beseech thee to protect the lives of all unborn children who are in danger of abortion.

Through thy care and guidance, instill in the hearts and minds of mothers, fathers, and those who perform abortion procedures, that the innocent unborn are human beings who are worthy of life and the benefits of parental love.

Great St. Joseph, let thy strong arms surround these children, shield them from harm and grant them the joy of life. Grant them above all the support needed for the reception of the Sacrament of Baptism by which they may become children of God and heirs to eternal life. + Amen.