2021 – The Year of St Joseph

Pope Francis has named this year THE YEAR OF ST JOSEPH - Joseph - who answered God’s call to become the earthly father and protector of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

Tomorrow, 19 March, is the Feast of St Joseph, so it is a good time to reflect on who he really was and how we can be inspired by him.

Though there is no record of any spoken word from Joseph in the Bible, all four Gospels refer to Jesus as “the son of Joseph”. And they portray Joseph as a humble but courageous man of compassion, honour and integrity. We might think of the famous quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson: ‘Who you are speaks so loudly, I can’t hear what you’re saying.’ Joseph’s actions speak louder than words and we can learn much from them.

• Joseph was a lowly carpenter and a hard worker (Mt13:55),
• He was a “just man” (Mt1:19), ever ready to carry out God’s will, no matter the hardship (Lk 2:22.27.39).
• He had the courage to marry Mary and become the legal father of Jesus (in a time when this would have been considered outrageous). He gave this child the name revealed by the angel: “You shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (Mt1:21). For ancient peoples, to give a name to a person or to a thing was to establish a relationship. Joseph loved Jesus with a father’s heart.
• After a long and tiring journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem, Joseph, the protector of his family, played an active role in the birth of Jesus the Saviour in a stable, (since “there was no place for them” elsewhere (Lk2:7). He witnessed the adoration of the shepherds (cf. Lk 2:8-20) and the Magi – wisemen (Mt 2:1-12).
• To protect Jesus from Herod, Joseph fled with his family and became a refugee in Egypt (Mt2:13-18).
• After returning to his own country, he led a hidden life in the tiny and obscure village of Nazareth in Galilee, far from Bethlehem, his ancestral town, and from Jerusalem and the Temple. When, during a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, Joseph and Mary lost track of the twelve-year-old Jesus, they anxiously sought him out and they found him in the Temple, speaking with the teachers of the Law (Lk2:41-50).

Pope Francis describes Joseph as having ‘A FATHER’S HEART’. Joseph was:

• The beloved father of Jesus
• A tender and loving father to Jesus
• An obedient and faithful father
• An accepting father
• A courageous father

Pope Francis reminds us that today (especially during the devastation of COVID 19) there are many people like St Joseph… ‘who do not appear in newspaper and magazine headlines, or on the latest television show, yet in these very days are surely shaping the decisive events of our history. Doctors, nurses, storekeepers and supermarket workers, cleaning personnel, caregivers, transport workers, men and women working to provide essential services and public safety, volunteers, priests, men and women religious, and so very many others. They understand that no one is saved alone… How many people daily exercise patience and offer hope, taking care to spread not panic, but shared responsibility. How many fathers, mothers, grandparents and teachers are showing our children, in small everyday ways, how to accept and deal with a crisis by adjusting their routines, looking ahead and encouraging the practice of prayer. How many are [quietly and without fanfare] praying, making sacrifices and interceding for the good of all”.

Saint Joseph reminds us that those who appear hidden or in the shadows can play a significant role in the lives of others. Each of us can discover in Joseph a wonderful role model– the person who goes unnoticed, but who is a daily, discreet and hidden presence –a support and a guide in times of trouble.

Over the years many people have created images that can help us to reflect on what kind of person Joseph was.