Saint Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary
S. Ioseph Sponsi B.M.V. Confessoris et Ecclesiae Universalis Patroni
Saint Joseph, of the royal house of David, was the chaste spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the foster-father and guardian of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Honoured as Patron of the Universal Church, his principal feast is kept on 19 March.
Saint Joseph holds a place of singular dignity among the saints, for to him was entrusted the care of the Holy Family itself. A descendant of King David, he is called by the Gospel a “just man.” He was espoused to the Blessed Virgin Mary, and when he learned, before they came together, that she was with child by the power of the Holy Ghost, he was reassured by an angel and took Mary into his home, becoming the lawful spouse of the Mother of God and the foster-father of her divine Son.
Guardian of the Redeemer
The Gospels show us Saint Joseph as a man of quiet obedience and ready faith. He cared for Mary and the Child Jesus at Bethlehem, led them in flight into Egypt to escape the wrath of Herod, and brought them home again to Nazareth when the danger had passed. There he provided for the Holy Family by the labour of his hands as a carpenter, and under his protection the Son of God grew in wisdom and stature. He is rightly called the Guardian of the Redeemer, faithful in the duties God placed before him though Scripture records not a single word from his lips.
The Church has long held Saint Joseph in great honour. By ancient and constant devotion he is invoked as the patron of a holy death, since tradition holds that he passed from this life in the company of Jesus and Mary. In 1870 Blessed Pope Pius IX solemnly declared him Patron of the Universal Church, and the faithful turn to him with confidence in every need, trusting in the intercession of one so close to Our Lord and Our Lady. Besides this principal feast on 19 March, the Church also honours his labour with the feast of Saint Joseph the Workman on 1 May.
The Collect
May we be helped, we beseech Thee, O Lord, by the merits of the Spouse of Thy most holy Mother: that what of ourselves we cannot obtain, may be given us through his intercession. Who livest and reignest with God the Father in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen.
Sanctissimae Genetricis tuae Sponsi, quaesumus, Domine, meritis adiuvemur: ut, quod possibilitas nostra non obtinet, eius nobis intercessione donetur. Qui vivis et regnas cum Deo Patre in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.
Patronage
Saint Joseph is the Patron of the Universal Church, of fathers and families, of workers and carpenters, of a holy and happy death, and of countless places and communities; he is invoked with great confidence in every kind of need.
In the Modern Calendar
In the modern calendar, this feast is observed on 19 March as a Solemnity under the title “Saint Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary.”
Common Questions
Who was Saint Joseph?
He was a descendant of King David, the chaste spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the foster-father and guardian of Our Lord Jesus Christ. The Gospel calls him a “just man,” and the Church honours him as Patron of the Universal Church.
When is the feast of Saint Joseph?
His principal feast is kept on 19 March. It is a First Class feast in the traditional calendar of the 1962 Missal and a Solemnity in the modern calendar. The Church also keeps the feast of Saint Joseph the Workman on 1 May.
Why is Saint Joseph the patron of a happy death?
By ancient tradition Saint Joseph died in the presence of Jesus and Mary, and so the faithful invoke him for the grace of a holy death in the friendship of God, attended by Our Lord and Our Lady.
See where this feast falls in the Church’s year on the liturgical calendar, or find a Traditional Latin Mass near you.
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