♔ 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.
 

✠ DONATIONS NEEDED ✠

 

The Apostolate of St. Joseph Prince of the Church is a non-profit apostolate started in 2011 with the mission of making St. Joseph, Patron of the Universal Church, better known and loved among the faithful. The Apostolate does this by sending out free books (authored by the Apostolate's founder) to people all around the world. These books are printed at the Apostolate's own expense, not to mention paying for the shipping charges, with the exception of the odd donation from a select few devotees of St. Joseph. (To those of you who have helped-out already, you know how grateful I am for your kindness.)

To date we have sent out hundreds of free, high quality, books on the subject of St. Joseph to people in the Philippines, Malta, India, UK, Australia, the USA, Canada and Spain.

In addition to making books available free of charge to those who could not afford them, the Apostolate has also sent out free St. Joseph sacramentals such as Scapulars, Rosaries, Holy Oil, Medals, Chaplets, Prayer Cards, etc...

Things have come to a temporary standstill as we still owe the printers (First Choice Books) $497.38 for the last batch of books. We cannot print any more St. Joseph materials for distribution until we have paid this bill. The founder is also struggling financially at this time and cannot afford to give as much as he used to.

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God bless you! All for Jesus, through Mary, with Joseph!

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