Saint Joseph
Click picture of Jesus and Saint Joseph to be taken to the website of the Saint Joseph Oratory founded by Blessed Brother Andre'.
Prayer for the canonization of
Brother André
Lord, you have chosen Blessed Brother André to spread devotion to Saint Joseph
and to dedicate himself to all those who are afflicted. Grant through his intercession the favor that we now request…
(make your request)
We also pray that the Church may canonize him as soon as possible. Grant us the grace to imitate his piety and charity so that, with him, we may share the reward
promised to all who care for their neighbours out of love for You.
Through Jesus Christ, our Lord
Amen.
When I was growing up in the 50s, I remember having role models and heroes, real heroes, not the faux ones we see kids admiring and emulating today. Particularly in sports where real athletes played the game for peanuts compared to the salaries and bonuses paid today. Young people learn to associate success with money and material things. Oh, to be sure, there are many excellent Catholic role models in sports - Mike "Sween Dog" Sweeney to name one. There are others. These are family men who put God first. They are generous with their resources and give back to their Church and community.But unfortunately the media downplays the spirituality of these men. The ones who make the front pages of magazines and newspapers are those who send the wrong signals to young folks. These signals often generate deviant activities on the part of the young who are so impresionable. No different are the so-called media stars many of whom send the wrong messages as well. Television, music videos, games and so on clearly introduce our young people (or at least expose them) to faux lives of crime simply to imitate their role models. Money lies at the bottom of most of this. There's money to be made by those who produce these things and young folks will almost do anything to obtain what they perceive as a necessity to 'make it.'Let's examine real role models. For the male, no one could exceed Saint Joseph save Jesus Himself. Next to Jesus, Saint Joseph offers young folks (and older too) the best possible role model to emulate. He was a just man, simple man but a man nonetheless. He provided for his family and protected them at all costs and all this he did without fully understand God's plan initially. He trusted God and that was enough for him. God said do it; Saint Joseph did it.Mary, Our Blessed Mother is the other role model for women and younger ones especially. Remaining totally obedient to the Divine Plan although she may not have understood it in part or whole, she nevertheless gave that first 'fiat.' She said yes to God and that was all He needed for her to bloom. She became the Mother of His Son. Remember that Mary was only about fifteen years old at the time so the concept of being the Mother of God and retaining her virginity perpetually was probably quite overwhelming. It would be for an older woman as well to be sure.So often, we hear the Gospel accounts at Christmas or on this or that Sunday in the readings, and our mind drifts off into neutral simply because we have heard that story before. We know how it turns out. We need to really put the breaks on and come to the full realization that these are real people who walked the Earth, who were human like you and me and had the same types of fears and concerns we do. Often we see Mary and Joseph in art holding a lily, posing in a pious pose. That's nice and it is reverent to be sure. But how many times can we look to them and see Mary in the kitchen making dinner while Joseph is in the carpenter shop teaching Jesus how to make a table or window frame? How often do we see them gathered around the table praying together as a family or sharing a meal and exchanging conversation on the activities and concerns of their day? All families used to do so at dinner at least when I was growing up. It was a sacred time for the family to gather.This page will examine Saint Joseph with particular emphasis on his role as husband, father and model for males in particular in these our troubled times. Emphasizing the role of the father in a family is paramount due to the increasing cracking of this cornerstone of life as we know it. The family is in deep trouble and the actions of many of our young people have borne that out and continue to do so in the news daily. Who is to blame? Blame is probably not relevant any longer. What is needed is prayer and lots of it to restore the dignity of the family as God intended.
The Miracle Staircase of Santa Fe, New Mexico
In 1872 the bishop of Santa Fe, New Mexico commissioned the building of a convent chapel, Our Lady of Light Chapel in the care of the Sisters of Loretto. During the course of its construction the architect died suddenly and only afterwards did the builders discover an error in the plans. There was no staircase to the choir loft. But worse, at that point of construction, any stairwell would take up much needed space and disfigure the design. The nuns began nine days of prayer in honor of St. Joseph, for he was a carpenter.
On the day after their novena ended, a shabbily dressed man appeared at the door. The Sisters showed him their choir loft and the limited space available to erect a staircase. He assured them he would be able to build one, and so they let him undertake the task. With him was a burro carrying the toolbox. He offered to begin at once, if they would allow him total privacy while he worked. They hired him and he locked himself in. For three months he permitted no visitors, then he opened the doors.
When the Mother Superior entered, she stared in amazement, there in the corner was a beautiful freestanding staircase rising in a double spiral to the choir loft that may be seen today by visitors to Santa Fe. Each section is perfectly fitted in a groove--not a nail being used in its construction. There is no central pole, no wall attachment, no sign of a nail or screw--just a few wooden pegs. Moreover, the wood he used was unlike any the Mother had ever seen. Yet the carpenter had brought no wood with him. Architects from all sections of the country go to inspect this unique and marvelous piece of craftsmanship.
When the work was completed and the Mother Superior of the convent wished to pay the man for his service, he was nowhere to be found. No one had seen him come or go. A reward was offered; no one ever claimed it. It is thought that the unknown carpenter was none other than St. Joseph, in whose honor the Sisters had received Communion every Wednesday that he might assist them in building a staircase. There is no doubt that the prayers of those nuns were answered in a most remarkable way.
As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. They ate and drank, they took husbands and wives, right up to the day Noah entered the ark—and when the flood came it destroyed them all.
It was much the same in the days of Lot: they ate and drank, they bought and sold, they built and planted. But on the day Lot left Sodom, fire and brimstone rained down from heaven and destroyed them all. It will be like that on the day the son of Man is revealed. . . . Remember Lot’s wife. Whoever tries to preserve his life will lose it; whoever loses it will keep it. (Luke 17:26-33)
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The Miracle Staircase of Santa Fe, New Mexico
In 1872 the bishop of Santa Fe, New Mexico commissioned the building of a convent chapel, Our Lady of Light Chapel in the care of the Sisters of Loretto. During the course of its construction the architect died suddenly and only afterwards did the builders discover an error in the plans. There was no staircase to the choir loft. But worse, at that point of construction, any stairwell would take up much needed space and disfigure the design. The nuns began nine days of prayer in honor of St. Joseph, for he was a carpenter.
On the day after their novena ended, a shabbily dressed man appeared at the door. The Sisters showed him their choir loft and the limited space available to erect a staircase. He assured them he would be able to build one, and so they let him undertake the task. With him was a burro carrying the toolbox. He offered to begin at once, if they would allow him total privacy while he worked. They hired him and he locked himself in. For three months he permitted no visitors, then he opened the doors.
When the Mother Superior entered, she stared in amazement, there in the corner was a beautiful freestanding staircase rising in a double spiral to the choir loft that may be seen today by visitors to Santa Fe. Each section is perfectly fitted in a groove--not a nail being used in its construction. There is no central pole, no wall attachment, no sign of a nail or screw--just a few wooden pegs. Moreover, the wood he used was unlike any the Mother had ever seen. Yet the carpenter had brought no wood with him. Architects from all sections of the country go to inspect this unique and marvelous piece of craftsmanship.
When the work was completed and the Mother Superior of the convent wished to pay the man for his service, he was nowhere to be found. No one had seen him come or go. A reward was offered; no one ever claimed it. It is thought that the unknown carpenter was none other than St. Joseph, in whose honor the Sisters had received Communion every Wednesday that he might assist them in building a staircase. There is no doubt that the prayers of those nuns were answered in a most remarkable way.
As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. They ate and drank, they took husbands and wives, right up to the day Noah entered the ark—and when the flood came it destroyed them all.
It was much the same in the days of Lot: they ate and drank, they bought and sold, they built and planted. But on the day Lot left Sodom, fire and brimstone rained down from heaven and destroyed them all. It will be like that on the day the son of Man is revealed. . . . Remember Lot’s wife. Whoever tries to preserve his life will lose it; whoever loses it will keep it. (Luke 17:26-33)