St. Joseph: His Life, His Virtues, His Privileges, His Power by The Very Rev. Archdeacon Kinane, P.P. - Chapter 4, Section 5 - 8

SECTION V.

The purity of St. Joseph.

St. Stephen, the first martyr, was canonised by the Holy Ghost. "And they stoned Stephen," says the sacred text, "invoking and saying: Lord Jesus receive my spirit. And falling on his knees, be cried with a loud voice, saying: Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep in the Lord" (Acts, vii. 58). The same Divine Spirit of truth and wisdom pronounces on the sanctity of St. Joseph, by styling him a "just man" (Matt. i. 19). The word "just" comprehends all virtues in the most eminent degree. St. John Chrysostom says: "Just, here means perfect in every virtue." * "No description," writes a client of our Saint, "can be more honourable, no eulogy more comprehensive; because this word just, according to commentators on Holy Writ, means that St. Joseph possessed all virtues in the degree of perfection" (Vallejo, p. 276).

St. Francis of Sales writes: "If the lily, by being exposed for a few days only to the heat of the sun, acquires its dazzling whiteness, who can conceive the extraordinary degree of purity to which St. Joseph was exalted, by being exposed, as he was, day and night, for so many years to the rays of the Sun of Justice, and of that mystical moon which derives all her splendour from Him?" We are at a loss to know what virtue to begin with, but the above suggests the purity of St. Joseph. In the 0ld and New Testament we have countless texts and examples to show how dear purity is to God. Saints excelled in different virtues; but purity is common to all. No soul shall ever enter heaven until she is purer than the sunbeam, and whiter than the virgin snow. Precious in the eight of God is the lily of holy purity. "No price is worthy of a continent soul" (Ecclus. xxv. 20). The chaste Susanna is held up to the admiration of the world; she preferred to die rather than sin in the sight of the Lord. The chaste souls are likened to the Angels. "At the resurrection," says our Blessed Lord, "they shall neither marry nor be married; but shall be as the Angels of God in heaven" (Matt. xxii. 30). The Angels are pure by nature; but tho chaste are pure by grace. Hence, St. Bernard asserts, that a chaste man differs from an Angel only in felicity, but not in virtue.

0ur Divine Lord loves the chaste souls, and feeds among the lilies, the emblems of purity. "I am the flower of the field and the lily of the valley. As the lily among the thorns, so my love among the daughters. . . . My beloved to me, and I to him, who feedeth among the lilies." (Cant, ii.)

The mystery of the Incarnation, and all its surroundings", prove to demonstration how dear to Jesus is the holy virtue of purity. St. John the Baptist, the Precursor of our Blessed Lord, was a chaste virgin. St. Peter was head of the Church; yet the favourite disciple, the "disciple whom Jesus loved," was St. John the Evangelist. This virgin disciple was privileged, at the Last Supper, to recline his head on the bosom of his Divine Saviour. "Now there was leaning on Jesus' bosom one of his disciples whom Jesus loved. Simon Peter, therefore, beckoned to him, and said to him: Who is it of whom he speaketh? He, therefore, leaning on the breast of Jesus, saith to him: Lord, who is it?" (John, xiii. 23.) When dying upon the cross, to whom did our Blessed Lord entrust what was dearest to Him on earth—His Blessed Mother? He gave charge of His Virgin Mother to the virgin disciple, St. John the Evangelist. "Now," says the Gospel, "there stood by the cross of Jesus, his mother, and the disciple standing whom he loved, he saith to his mother: Woman, behold thy son. After that, he saith to his disciple: Behold thy mother. And from that hour the disciple took her to his own" (John, xix. 25).

St. Jerome, St. Augustine, and other Fathers, assign virgin purity as the cause of this special love of Jesus for St. John. This can hardly be doubted; for the Church, in the Divine 0ffice on the Feast of St. John, says that "Jesus loved him more tenderly than the other Apostles; for his special prerogative of chastity made him worthy of this preference, because when called to the Apostolate he was a virgin, and a virgin he remained all his life."

The confessors are high in heaven; they wore chains on earth for the love of Jesus. The martyrs, with the palm branch in their hands, are higher still ; they washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb; they sealed their faith with their blood; they sacrificed their lives for the love of Jesus. Higher and higher still, is another band or choir of Saints. Who are they? They are the spotless virgins! In heaven above, the Saints sing various hymns and canticles in praise of the Almighty. There is one special canticle which confessors or martyrs dare not pronounce, and which virgin lips alone are privileged to sing. Let us cite the inspired words of the Evangelist: "I saw the Lamb upon Mount Sion, and one hundred and forty-four thousand with him, singing, as it were, a new song, and which none else can sing but only these hundred and forty-four thousand which he had redeemed from the earth. These are such as were never defiled with women; they are virgins who follow the Lamb wheresoever he goes" (Apoc. xiv. 1-3). Such and so great are the special privileges awarded by God in heaven above to the pure and chaste. "Blessed," says the Redeemer, "are the clean of heart, for they shall see God" (Matt. v. 8).

But the example of the Blessed Virgin preaches far more eloquently than the examples we have adduced, how dear and precious in the sight of God is the holy virtue of purity. The purity of the Blessed Virgin is as high above any Saint, or that of all the Saints put together, as the heavens are above the earth* Not only did Mary, countless times, carry in her arms, and as many times more fondly press to her bosom, the Infant Saviour. Not only did Mary bear in her chaste womb for nine months the Incarnate Son of God, but the very blood, out of which the Sacred Body of Jesus was formed by the Holy Ghost, the Precious Blood, by which all mankind was redeemed on Mount Calvary, had its source in the Heart of Mary Immaculate. Such being the relation between Mary and Jesus, the relation of a mother to a son, no wonder that her privileges should be unique that she should be conceived without sin, and that the smallest stain of actual sin should never sully her soul. No wonder that she should be the purest, the most perfect, the most immaculate, the most holy soul, that the Almighty has ever created, or ever will create: of course we do not include the soul of our Blessed Saviour. When Mary Immaculate stood before her Maker, radiant in beauty, purity, and perfection, God, pleased, so to speak, with the work of His hands, deigned to salute her, saying: "Thou art all fair, 0 my love, and there is no spot in thee" (Can. iv. 7). "Thou art beautiful, 0 my love, sweet and comely as Jerusalem. . . . 0ne is my dove, my perfect one is but one. She is the only one." (Can. vi.)

The Blessed Virgin, as we have said above, was the purest, the most perfect, the most immaculate soul the Almighty ever created. Next to Mary in purity, dignity, and sanctity, is St. Joseph. In the first place, St. Joseph was chosen by heaven to be the spouse of the Blessed Virgin. Now God was so jealous of Mary's purity, that He would give no one to her as a real husband, as Joseph was, but the purest and holiest of men. Prom among all the sons of Israel, God chose St. Joseph to be the guardian and protector of the virtue of the Immaculate Mother of the Redeemer of the world; and hence, for this end, the Almighty showered upon him the choicest, the richest, and the most precious graces of heaven. To be chosen, and to be worthy to be the husband of Mary Immaculate, is in itself sufficient to prove the supereminent virtue and purity of our Saint. The title, "husband of Mary," fades away into insignificance compared to the title, " reputed father" of Jesus. The gleam of purity shining upon St. Joseph, from his relation with Mary, is lost in the meridian splendour of the virtue necessary for him from his relation with Jesus, the Eternal Son of Justice, Purity, and Sanctity itself. None but the clean and pure of heart can Bee God. St. Joseph not only saw his God, but lived, walked, and worked in His visible Divine presence. If purity obtained for St. John the Evangelist the privilege of reclining his head on the bosom of his Saviour, what must be the purity of St. Joseph, who countless times bore in his arms the Saviour of the world, and pressed to his bosom the Divine Babe? If one ray of God's pure love is sufficient, as it is, to purify and sanctify the soul of man, what must be the purity of St. Joseph, upon whose soul shone for years, in their full effulgence, the rays of the Eternal Sun of Justice? Let the honeyed pen of St. Francis of Sales express it. "St. Joseph," says the Saint, "surpassed the Angels and Saints in purity. For if, being exposed for a few days only to the heat of the material sun, the lily acquires its dazzling whiteness, who can conceive the extraordinary degree of purity to which St. Joseph was exalted, exposed as he was, day and night, for so many years to the rays of the Sun of Justice, and of that mystical Moon which derives her splendours from Him?"

Venerable Maria of Jesus of Agreda writes: "In the virtue of purity, he was more elevated than the highest Seraphim. . . . By this perfection and by his angelic integrity, he was prepared to be the spouse of the purest of creatures and to live in her society."

0 Jesus, make us pure and chaste. 0 Jesus, help us when tempted against holy purity. 0 Mary Immaculate! obtain for us purity of body and soul.

"Guardian of virgins, and holy father Joseph, to whose faithful care Jesus Christ, innocence itself, and Mary, Virgin of virgins, were committed, I pray and beseech thee, by these dear privileges, Jesus and Mary, that being preserved from all uncleanness, I may, with a spotless mind, pure heart, and chaste body, ever most chastely serve Jesus and Mary all the days of my life."

SECTION VI.

The perpetual Virginity of St. Joseph.

That St. Joseph lived and died a pure virgin, like his Immaculate spouse, though not of faith, is absolutely certain. Reason, and the ancient and constant Tradition of the Church, prove it beyond doubt.

In the preceding section, we have seen how God loves purity, how dear to the Almighty is chastity, and with what jealous care God watched over the purity of Mary in honour of the Incarnation. From this we may conclude that God Almighty would never choose, from among the sons of men, a guardian and spouse for the Immaculate Mother of God, and a foster-father for His beloved and eternal Son Jesus Christ, any but a pure and perpetual virgin; this guardian and spouse of Mary, this foster-father of Jesus, is St. Joseph: therefore, St. Joseph lived and died a pure virgin.

We shall select only a few out of the many authorities before us, in almost every age of the Church, in favour of the perpetual Virginity of St. Joseph.

St. Jerome, writing against the heresiarch, Helvidius, who impiously denied the perpetual virginity of our Blessed Lady, says: "Thou sayest that Mary did not remain a virgin. I not only maintain it, but aver that Joseph, too, was a virgin, through Mary; so that a Virgin Son might be born of this virgin marriage. It does not appear that Joseph had ever before contracted marriage. Of the Mother of God, he was rather a guardian than a husband: hence we must believe that he lived with Mary as a virgin, and so deserved to be called the Father of the Lord."

St. Augustine and St. Thomas maintain the same doctrine; and hence the learned Cardinal Baronius, summing up the proofs, writes: "All the Catholic writers of the Latin Church, who have flourished since the days of St. Jerome, have followed his opinion as to the perpetual virginity of St. Joseph; so much so that St. Peter Damian, the ablest writer of his day, says, with great satisfaction, that the faith of the Church is, that St. Joseph was a virgin like his most pure spouse (meaning by faith, as the accurate Suarez explains, the pious belief of the Church). And surely, so far as we are allowed to have recourse to probable conjectures, who will believe that God would not select a virgin spouse for His Mother, when, after He became man, and was dying on the cross, He confided her to one who was a virgin ?"* ,

The learned John Gerson, preaching before the Council of Constance, said: "As it became Mary to shine forth with the greatest purity, so was it becoming for her to have a most pious spouse, who would remain before and after in perpetual virginity."

The Bollandists say, that "since the days of St. Jerome the whole Latin Church has unanimously adopted the opinion of the perpetual virginity of St. Joseph."

We shall cite only one more authority.

Canisius writes: "Bede and Alcuin clearly confess the perpetual virginity of St. Joseph. . . . Hugh Victorinus, called in his time a second St. Augustine, and other theologians, especially St. Thomas and Gerson, not to mention moderns, maintain, with solid authorities, that Joseph and Mary, by mutual consent, consecrated themselves to God by a vow of perpetual virginity. . . . St. Peter Damian, an enlightened divine, warmly holds that the faith of the Church is, that not only the Mother of God, but Joseph, His reputed father, was a virgin."*

Hence, for the greater glory of our Saint, we are glad to repeat the heading of this section, that it is absolutely certain that our great Patriarch, St. Joseph, lived and died, like his immaculate spouse, a pure and spotless virgin. 0 most chaste St. Joseph, pray for us.

SECTION VII.

The Faith of St. Joseph.

"Faith," says St. Paul, " is the substance of things to be hoped for, the evidence of things that appear not" (Heb. xi. 1). Faith is the foundation of our salvation: it is the groundwork of our supernatural life. Faith is the first great theological and divine virtue, for it has God and the truths of God as its immediate object. Faith is absolutely essential for the salvation of every adult that has come to the use of reason. "Now, this is eternal life; that they may know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou has sent" (John, xvii. 3). "Go ye into the whole world," said our Blessed Redeemer, "and preach the Gospel to every creature. He that believeth, and is baptised, shall be saved: but he that believeth not, shall be condemned" (Mark, xvi. 16). ""Without faith," says St. Paul, "it is impossible to please God. For he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and is a rewarder to them that seek him" (Heb. xi. 6). "Man," writes the Apostle, " is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ; we also believe in Christ Jesus, that we may be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified'! (Gal. ii. 16). And " Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost," preached of Jesus: "Neither is there salvation in any other. For there is no other name under heaven given to men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts, iv. 12). "Faith," says the Council of Trent, "is the beginning of human salvation, the foundation and root of all justification; without which it is impossible to please God, and to come into the fellowship of His sons." (Sess. VI. c. viii.)

The grounds or authority of our faith is no other than the authority of God Himself. God cannot deceive or be deceived. God has deigned to reveal or make known to man His Divine truths or mysteries of religion; upon God's unerring word, upon God's infallible authority, we believe the doctrines of faith, which our minds cannot understand.

Faith is most pleasing to God; because, by faith, proud man bends his intellect and will, so to speak, to believe what he can neither see or understand. Faith gives great glory to the Almighty; because, by faith, man submits and gives up captive to God his proud intellect and stubborn will. Faith pays supreme homage to God; because, by faith, we acknowledge God's unerring truth; on God's authority, we adore and believe what we cannot comprehend.

Wonderful and admirable, no doubt, was the simple faith of St. Joseph. The Incarnation is one of the most sublime and most profound Mysteries of our holy faith. To a man that believes in the Incarnation, no Mystery can present a difficulty. St. Joseph's faith was wonderful, both with regard to Jesus and Mary. 0n the authority of God, Abraham believed that a barren woman would become a mother; at. the word of an angel, St. Joseph believed that a virgin would become a mother, and yet be as virginal after as before the birth of her child! In blind obedience to faith, did St. Joseph salute the Virgin Mother.

We have said that the Mystery of the Incarnation is one of the most sublime and profound of our holy faith. All the unique privileges, all the choicest graces of heaven, showered so copiously upon the Blessed Virgin, were in honour of the Incarnation. The time of man's .Redemption had come! Mary stands before God in all the beauty and odour of perfect sanctity: she is "sweet," "comely," "beautiful," " all fair." From the purest blood of her Immaculate Heart, the Holy Ghost formed a perfect body; a perfect human soul was created by God, and united to that body; at the very instant of that union, before that mind could think, or the heart beat, the Eternal Word, the Second Divine Person of the most Adorable Trinity, descended from heaven, and was hypostatically united to the soul and body; thus, being one Divine Person in two distinct natures, Human and Divine. Stupendous and adorable is the Mystery of the Incarnation! To redeem fallen man, and through love for sinful, ungrateful man, the Eternal Son of God, descends from the bosom of His Father and assumes human flesh. The Eternal is born in time, the Infinite is circumscribed I After the Blessed Virgin, St. Joseph was the first on earth that believed and adored the Mystery of the Incarnation. "Behold," says the Gospel, "the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in sleep, saying: Joseph, son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a Son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus. For he shall save his people from their sins" (Matt. i. 20). Without inquiry or hesitation, St. Joseph accepted the word of the angel, and paid supreme homage to the Incarnate Son of God.

The Evangelist, soaring like the eagle, ascends to the bosom of the Eternal Father, and in awfully solemn and sacred words, narrates the profound Mystery of the Incarnation.

"In the beginning," writes the inspired writer, "was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. . . . And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (and we saw his glory, the glory, as it were, of the only-begotten of the Father) full of grace and truth " (John, i. 1-14). Meditating on the infinite love, mercy, goodness, and compassion of the Son of God, manifested in the Incarnation, as well as on the infinite humiliations of the Lord of glory, we can only exclaim with St. Paul: "0 the depth of the riches of the wisdom, and of the knowledge of God! How incomprehensible are his judgments, and how unsearchable his ways" (Rom. xi. 33).

Great and many were the tests and trials of St. Joseph's faith. If a creature could be worthy to be the dwelling-place of the great Creator, Mary's chaste womb was not an unfitting abode for the Incarnate Son of God. This none knew so well as St. Joseph. For the Nativity of the Redeemer of the world, St. Joseph might not unreasonably expect great preparation at Bethlehem, where, according to the prophecy, He was to be born. Arrived there, so far from a grand reception, he found not a lodging, a house, or a home to shelter the Mother of God, fatigued from the long journey of about eighty miles. The bleak open cave was the royal palace, the cold crib the cradle of state, the swaddling clothes the gorgeous attire, and the ass and ox the attendants on the Saviour of the world. Far from being shocked at the humiliations and poverty of the crib and manger, St. Joseph's soul expanded, so to speak, in admiration of the sublime Mystery, and in simple, docile faith, joined Mary in adoring, praising, glorifying, and loving the Divine Infant Redeemer.

Sublime, docile, and supernatural was St. Joseph's faith in the Incarnate Son of God. With reverence and love, St. Joseph looks into the Divine face of the new-born Babe. The Infant Jesus appears weak, yet by faith St. Joseph recognised Him as the 0mnipotent God by "whom all things were made." Jesus lies in the manger; yet tho heavens and the earth cannot contain Him, planets and systems revolve in His immensity. He is friendless, and without homage; yet the eye of the most Adorable Trinity, and the attention of the nine choirs of the Blessed Spirits in Paradise, are fixed upon the Saviour. "Adore Him, all you his angels" (Ps. xcvi. 7). "And, again, when he bringeth in the first-begotten into the world, he saith: And let all the angels of God adore him" (Heb. i. 6).

Meditating on the love and humiliations of the Divine Babe, St. Bernard cries out: "Hear, ye heavens, and lend your ears, 0 earth! Stand in raptures of astonishment and praise, 0 you whole creation! but you chiefly, 0 man—Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God, was born in Bethlehem of Juda. 0 short word of the Eternal Word abridged for us, but filled with heavenly sweetness! The affection of this melting sweetness struggles within, earnestly labouring widely to diffuse its teeming abundance, but finds not words. For such is the grace and energy of this speech, that it tastes less sweet if one iota in it be changed."

Day after day, St. Joseph's faith was put to new tests and trials. Scarcely is the Saviour born, when the cruel Herod plots to take away His life !—the creature to take away the life of the Creator! Does Jesus, by a breath, wither up and annihilate the venomous reptile? or does the Saviour send one of His Angels to slay the tyrant by a look? No ; far from it. There is no manifestation of the power, majesty, and Divinity of the new-born King. God makes use of the services of man, of St. Joseph himself, to protect and save the life of the Saviour of the world.

After many years of exile, the Holy Family are admonished to return to their native home, and are assured that the life of the Child is safe. And why? Is there now to be a manifestation of the power of God over man? No; but simply because His enemies are dead. The Gospel says: "But when Herod was dead, behold an angel of the Lord appeared in sleep to Joseph, in Egypt, saying: Arise, and take the child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel. For they are dead that sought the life of the child" (Matt. ii. 19).

To many the hidden life of Jesus at Nazareth was the greatest test of the faith of St. Joseph.

Jesus is God, the long-expected Saviour, the Author of a New Gospel. Jesus is come to teach, convert, and save the whole human family. Yet what does St. Joseph hear and see? He hears of false, wicked teachers and philosophers perverting, and corrupting the minds and hearts of men by false teaching and erroneous doctrine; he hears of kings and emperors preparing for war and battle now as of yore; he sees the Jew, as well as the heathen, proud, wicked, and sinful; he sees mankind sitting in darkness and the shades of death; and yet among men were "the way," "the truth," "the life," " the true light that enlighteneth every man that cometh into the world." Amid this night of darkness, sin, and error, St. Joseph sees, at Nazareth, Jesus hidden and unknown, nay' despised as the carpenter's son. This trial of faith lasted to his death; for St. Joseph was not privileged to see the stupendous miracles which manifested to the world the Divinity, power, and glory of the Son of God. Yet, so far from wavering, the divine, supernatural faith of St. Joseph in the Divinity of the Saviour of the world, increased every day, from the moment he knew of the Incarnation, to the hour of his death.

"0 just and holy Joseph," exclaims Cardinal D'Ailly, "how didst thou so quickly and so firmly believe these sublime mysteries P"

The life of Jesus, hidden and unknown during the life of St. Joseph, is like the hidden life of Jesus in the Tabernacle. St. Joseph saw no miracles to animate his faith in the Divinity of Jesus; he believed the word of the Angel. We may not be privileged to witness miracles for the strengthening of our faith in the Real Presence of Jesus on our altars; but we have God's own unerring, infallible Word, which is as true as God Himself. May our faith he like the faith of St. Joseph! May we ever treat Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament with the same faith, reverence, care, and love with which St. Joseph treated the Infant and Child Jesus! St. Joseph pray for us!

SECTION VIII.

The Charity of St. Joseph.

Charity is the love of God. Charity is the union, the peace, the friendship of the soul with its Maker. Charity is the queen of virtues; and when, in heaven above, all other virtues cease to exist, charity reigns supreme, and that for all eternity. " Hear, 0 Israel," says the sacred text, "the Lord our God is one Lord. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart, and with thy whole 6oul, and with thy whole strength. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thy heart. And thou shalt tell them to thy children, and thou shalt meditate upon them sitting in thy house, and walking on thy journey, sleeping and rising. And thou shalt bind them as a sign on thy hand, and they shall be and move between thy eyes. And thou shalt write them in the entry, and on the doors of thy house" (Deut. vi. 4-9). Thus, by the great Commandment of divine love, our hearts with all their affections, our souls with all their faculties, and our bodies with all their senses and actions, belong, by precept, to God alone. 0ur Blessed Lord said: "This is the greatest and first commandment" (Matt. xxii. 38).

Upon the soul of man God has stamped His own image and likeness; and, as matter gravitates towards the centre, so our soul, by divine love, tends to and is united with God, its centre and Maker. By charity the soul soars, so to speak, above all created things, and unites itself with the Lord of glory; by charity the soul forsakes all earthly things, and flings herself into the infinite ocean of God's divine love.

Charity, or the love of God, not only soars above the highest heavens, and ascends to the bosom of the Eternal Father, but it circles the earth, and enfolds in its mantle the whole human family. By charity we love God for His own sake, and all mankind as ourselves for the love of God. Jesus said to him: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God, with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with thy whole mind. This is the greatest and first commandment. And the second is like to this. Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 0n these two commandments dependeth the whole law and the prophets" (Matt. xxii. 37).

This charity, by which we love our neighbours as ourselves for the love of God, is a spark of that divine flame by which we love God above all things for His own sake.

"Dearly beloved," says St. John the Evangelist, " let us love one another, for charity is of God. And every one that loveth, is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not his neighbour, knoweth not God; for God is charity. . . . God is charity; and he that abideth in charity, abideth in God, and God in him" (1 John, iv. 7). 0ur blessed Lord said to His disciples: "A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another, as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this shall men know that you are my disciples, if you have love one for another" (John, xiii. 34).

As Jesus died for the whole human race, and shed His Precious Blood to redeem the whole world, BO this fraternal charity embraces all mankind, friends and foes alike. In the sublime Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says: "I say to you, love your enemies, do good to them that hate you: and pray for them that persecute and calumniate you: that you may be the children of your Father who is in heaven, who maketh his sun to rise upon the good and bad, and raineth upon the just and the unjust. For if you love them that love you, what reward shall you have? do not even the publicans do this? And if you salute your brethren only, what do you more? do not also the heathens this? Be you therefore perfect, as also your heavenly Father is perfect" (Matt. v. 44). "If any man say," adds the Evangelist, "I love God, and hateth his brethren, he is a liar. For he that loveth not his brother whom he seeth, how can he love God whom he seeth riot? And this commandment we have from God, that he who loveth God, love also his brother" (John, iv. 20). Thus, the ray of divine charity, by which we love God above all things for His own sake, and that by which we love our neighbour as ourselves for the love of God, is one and the same, and issues from the Eternal Son of Justice.

In every soul in the state of grace this heavenly flame burns, and is extinguished only by mortal sin. This charity is intensified in holy souls in proportion to their virtues and sanctity.

We cannot measure, but only contemplate, and that at a distance, the intensity of the charity or love of our great St. Joseph. The nearer we approach the fire, the greater the heat; the nearer we come to the sun, the more intense the rays. What, then, must not be the heat of divine love that burned in the soul of St. Joseph, who lived for so many years in the very presence of Jesus Christ, the Eternal Sun of Charity ?" If," writes St. Francis of Sales, "by being exposed for a few days only to the heat of the material sun, the lily acquires its dazzling whiteness, who can conceive the extraordinary degree of charity to which St. Joseph was exalted, exposed, as he was, day and night, for so many years, to the rays of the Sun of Justice, and of that mystical moon which derives her splendour from Him

The Divine Providence of God proportions the means to the end. Hence, the more sublime the mission of a Saint, or the greater the dignity of a Saint, the more abundantly will God shower down upon that Saint the graces of His Divine love. Now, after the Blessed Virgin, no Saint or Angel entered so intimately into the eternal decrees for the salvation of mankind as St. Joseph. Hence, it was meet on the part of God to bestow upon him love and grace beyond that of any other Saint or Angel in heaven. In a word, the heavenly-appointed mission of St. Joseph as spouse of the chaste Mother of God, and, higher still, as fosterfather, guardian, and protector of the Redeemer of the world, is unique, has no equal; so his holiness, or love of God, surpasses that of any other saint, the Blessed Virgin Mary alone excepted. St. Alphonsus Liguori says: "We cannot doubt that whilst St. Joseph lived with Jesus, he received such a superabundance of graces, that he surpasses in merit all the other saints."

Nor need we wonder if, as the Gospel narrates, a short conversation with Jesus inflamed with divine love the hearts of the two disciples on their way to Emmaus, what flame of divine love must have burned in the heart of St. Joseph, who spent mouths and years in the most intimate friendship and the closest communion with Jesus Christ, the Saviour and Redeemer of the world.

If one ray 01 the burning love 0. the Sacred Heart of Jesus is sufficient to consume with the flames of divine charity the soul of man, how can we measure the intensity of the charity of St. Joseph, who, countless times, carried in his arms, and pressed to his bosom, that burning furnace of infinite and divine love, the throbbing and loving Heart of the Infant Jesus. A devout client writes: "The light of the Divine Child's eyes, the sound of His voice, the play of His fingers, cast St. Joseph into a constant ecstasy of love."

0 merciful Jesus, enkindle in our hearts the burning fire of Thy divine love. 0 Divine Redeemer! grant us the grace to love God, above all things, for His own sake; and to love our neighbours as ourselves for the love of God. Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph, pray that we may love and serve God faithfully all the days of our lives.

St. Joseph: His Life, His Virtues, His Privileges, His Power by The Very Rev. Archdeacon Kinane, P.P. - Chapter 4, Section 2 - 4

SECTION II.

The Sanctity of St. Joseph. St. Joseph, in Sanctity, as in Dignity, excels all God's Saints, and is next to the Blessed Virgin Mary herself.

In the supernatural, as in the moral and physical order, the infinite wisdom and power of God suit the means to the end. God gives grace and sanctity to His Saints to fulfil the office and rank for which His Divine Providence has destined them.* The nearer a soul is destined to approach God, and the more intimately and largely she enters into the scheme of Redemption, the greater is her dignity, and in proportion is her sanctity. In the above principles we have the origin and the source of the sanctity, privileges, and choicest graces, showered, in all the plenitude of their abundance, upon the soul of St. Joseph by the Almighty. In the 0ld Law the Prophets and Patriarchs were holy; because they were, in a sense, the Ambassadors between God, and His people; and the channels of His revelations and messages to mankind. Thus the Prophet Jeremias writes, "And the world of the Lord came to me, saying: Before I formed thee in the bowels of thy mother I knew thee: and before thou earnest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and made thee a prophet unto nations" (Jer. i. 5). The Prophet was sanctified; because his mission was to announce to nations the mysteries and revelations of God Almighty. St. John the Baptist " leaped for joy in his mother's womb," and was sanctified before his eyes saw the light of day; because he was destined to be the Precursor of the Messias; to baptise, in the waters of the Jordan, the Saviour of the world; and to point Him out in person to mankind saying, "Behold the Lamb of God."

The Blessed Virgin approached unspeakably nearer to God, and far greater and higher was her mission and part in the scheme of man's Redemption. To dilate upon these points would be to write the life of the Blessed Virgin; suffice it to say that no relation could be more intimate than that of the son and mother ; no dignity greater than Mother of God. "In one respect," writes Cardinal Newman, "the Blessed Virgin surpasses all, even possible creatures, viz., that she is the Mother of her Creator. What dignity can be too great to attribute to her, who is so closely bound up, as intimately one with the Eternal Word, as a mother with her son?”* And what is the consequence? We find that her sanctity, her privileges, and special graces are exactly in proportion to her dignity, and to her relation with Jesus, her Son and Saviour. As the Blessed Virgin approached nearer to God than any other creature, so her sanctity soars aloft beyond the region of our conception, and excels that of any Saint or Angel; nay, that of all the blessed Spirits put together. Here we have the key-note to the sanctity of St. Joseph.

The Blessed Virgin was the holiest of all creatures; because she approached nearer to Jesus; because her relation to Jesus was closer, more intimate than that of any other creature. Now what was the relation between St. Joseph, and our Blessed Saviour Jesus Christ? How close did he approach to Jesus? What was his mission with regard to Jesus?

In the first place, we see the heavenly appointed mission of St. Joseph with regard to the Blessed Virgin, the Immaculate Mother of Jesus. "When we speak of Mary, we speak of Jesus; speaking of her grandeur, we speak of God's own grandeur. After God, nothing in heaven or on earth is greater than Mary," writes the devout Cardinal de Berulle. Nothing that the infinite power, wisdom, and love of God could do, in a sense, were wanting to sanctify, purify, and beautify the soul of Mary in honour of the Incarnation; hence perfect sinlessness, perfect purity, perfect immaculateness, perfect union with and love of God, were her unique privileges at her Conception and during her whole life. The Almighty was pleased, if we may so speak, with the work of His hands, and no doubt, watched over Mary with a jealous care.

To whose care was this heavenly jewel, this Lily of Israel, committed? To St. Joseph's. To whose guardianship was the Immaculate Virgin entrusted? To St. Joseph's. From the highest heavens God surveyed the earth from pole to pole to find one worthy of Mary; and whom did He find? St. Joseph. Long before the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin, God had created a soul for a high and holy mission; and for that mission God showered upon the soul the choicest dewdrops of heavenly graces. Who was he? St. Joseph. Who, among the sons of men, was found, worthy to receive at the altar the hand of the Virgin Mother of God in consecrated wedlock? St. Joseph. Who was the angel, in human flesh, that a jealous God appointed to guard, in marriage, the perpetual vow of chastity that Mary had made from her cradle? St. Joseph. Under whose roof did the Eternal Word become Incarnate? St. Joseph's. Whose faith never wavered, never doubted the fidelity of his spouse? St. Joseph's. Whose hands were privileged to earn daily bread for the support of the Mother of the God of the universe? St. Joseph's. 0n whose arm did Mary, in her delicate state, lean for support from Nazareth to Bethlehem? St. Joseph's. Who watched over Mary at the crib at Bethlehem? _ St. Joseph. Who helped Mary on the Flight into Egypt? Who died in the arms of the Mother of God? St. Joseph. Here we have one reason, one cause, one source, of the dignity; and hence of the sanctity, and special virtues, and privileges of St. Joseph. The relation of a spouse, a guardian, a protector for the Virgin Mother of God, the Immaculate Queen of heaven, speaks more eloquently than words for the holiness of our great St, Joseph.

We know that God loved Mary so tenderly, and in honour of the Incarnation of the Eternal Word, watched over, with such jealous care, her unique privileges, that He would give her for her protector no other than the purest, the most immaculate, and the most holy of the sons of men.

But we have a still greater reason, a more profound source, for the holiness of St. Joseph, and that is, his relation, his heavenly mission, his intimate connection with Jesus Christ, our Blessed Saviour.

Sacred and sublime was the heavenly appointed mission of St. Joseph regarding our Blessed Lord Jesus Christ. There can be no doubt that, after the Blessed Virgin, St. Joseph was the first on earth to whom the glad tidings of the mystery of Redemption were conveyed, and who was the first to adore the Incarnate Son of God. Long before the birth of the Redeemer of the World, the Gospel tells us "the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in his sleep, saying: Joseph, son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son: and thou shalt call his name Jesus. For he shall save his people from their sins." (Matt. i. 20, 21).

St. Joseph learned the mystery of the Incarnation first from the lips of the Blessed Virgin herself. Here God confirms that secret information by a solemn, authentic testimony from heaven. After this, with what care, love, and reverential awe did St. Joseph watch over the mother and the unborn Divine Babe?

After Mary, the Mother of Jesus, no saint approached so near to the divine person of Jesus, no saint had a mission so intimately connected with our Blessed Saviour as St. Joseph. Who watched over the Mother and the Child from Nazareth to Bethlehem? St. Joseph. Who, forgetful of his own fatigues, went from door to door at Bethlehem, seeking a shelter for the exhausted Mother of Jesus? St. Joseph. Who, first after Mary, adored, loved, and worshipped the Divine Infant in the crib at Bethlehem? St. Joseph. Who, first after Mary, took in his arms, and pressed to his bosom, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and kissed the Sacred Feet of the Redeemer of the world? St. Joseph. To whom did the Eternal Father send down an Angel to give instruction how to protect the Infant Jesus from the cruelty of the tyrant Herod? To St. Joseph. Who guarded and protected, as well as adored and loved, the Divine Babe in the Flight into Egypt? St. Joseph. Who laboured with his hand for the support of the Mother and the Child in a strange land? St. Joseph. After the death of Herod, to whom did the Almighty send another messenger from heaven, to "take the child and his mother" “into the land of Israel?" To St. Joseph. Who "every year went to Jerusalem at the solemn day of the Pasch" with Jesus and Mary? St. Joseph. Who was privileged to earn by the labour of his hands daily bread for Jesus and Mary? St. Joseph. Who constantly walked and talked with Jesus, and lived in the most familiar intimacy and presence of Jesus? who, hour by hour, looked into his heavenly countenance, and saw infinite intelligence and wisdom beaming in his divine eye? St. Joseph. Who died in the arms of Jesus and Mary? St. Joseph. Who, in a word, was chosen by God to be called the Father of Jesus, and to be reputed among men as the father of Jesus? St. Joseph.

Here, as we before remarked, is the keynote, the source and reason of the dignity, sanctity, and special privileges and virtues of St. Joseph.

Jesus, infinite sanctity, would never allow any man to be the spouse of his Immaculate Mother, to be his own guardian and protector, to be a member, nay, head, of the Holy Family, to be even called and deemed his father, but the purest, the most holy, the most perfect that God ever created or ever will create. Such is the sanctity of our great Patriarch St. Joseph.*

We may conclude this section with the words of St. Alphonsus Liguori and of Father Segneri. "We cannot doubt," says the saint, "that whilst St. Joseph lived with Jesus, he received such superabundance of grace, that he surpasses in sanctity and merit all other saints." The holy and eloquent Father Segneri writes: "St. Joseph was ennobled and singularly privileged with the honour of spouse of the Mother of God, a dignity which is a solid principle; from which it follows, with every mark of probability, that St. Joseph was not only sanctified, as we maintain, in his Mother's womb, but that he was afterwards confirmed in grace, and exempt from evil; so that no man—we boldly affirm, no man— on this earth was ever holier than Joseph."

Glorious Patriarch, greatest of Saints, St. Joseph, pray for us, and obtain for us the grace of a holy life and happy death.

SECTION III.

St. Joseph teas Sanctified in his Mother’s Womb.

Upon the truth of the above proposition or opinion, we say, at the start, the Gospels and early Fathers are silent. In the early ages the Sacred Humanity was so vividly before the minds of the people, that the great duty of the Christian Apologists in those times was to prove to an unbelieving race the Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ. Hence we find in their writings not much on the Sacred Humanity of our Saviour, little upon the Blessed Virgin, and still less upon St. Joseph. We may also remark that God, who knows "the times and the seasons," reserved Devotions to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and to St. Joseph in a special manner, for this nineteenth century. Let us here state that everyone is at perfect liberty to hold and believe the opposite opinion, vis,, that sanctification before birth, after the Blessed Virgin, was the special grace of St. John the Baptist and the Prophet Jeremias alone, and not the privilege of our great Patriarch St. Joseph. We only wish to show that the opinion at the head of this section is tenable, and that everyone can safely hold and believe it, as we ourselves do, on sound theological principles.

The Prophet Jeremias was sanctified in his mother's womb. "And the word of the Lord," writes the Prophet, "came to ma saying: Before I formed thee in the bowels of thy mother, I knew thee: and before thou earnest forth out of the womb, I sanctified thee, and made thee a prophet unto the nations." (Jer. i. 4, 5.) St. John the Baptist was sanctified before his birth. The Gospel says: "And Mary rising up in those days, went into the hill country with haste into a city of Juda. And she entered into the house of Zachary, and saluted Elizabeth. And it came to pass: that when Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the infant leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost. And she cried out with a loud voice and said: Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me. For behold as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in my ears the infant in my womb leaped for joy" (Luke, i. 3944).

The Blessed Virgin was sanctified in her conception. Sin, whether original or actual, never sullied her immaculate soul.

Now, we have seen elsewhere that God gives graces and special privileges suited and in proportion to the dignity and mission of His Saints. "We have also seen that our great Patriarch, St. Joseph, was elevated by God in dignity beyond any Saint of the 0ld or New Testament; and that he ranks next to the Blessed Virgin Mary herself. If, therefore, the Almighty sanctified, as He did, the Prophet Jeremias, before he was born, because his mission was to proclaim His eternal truths; if God sanctified, as He did, the Baptist in his mother's womb, because he was to baptise and to point out the Lamb of God; is it not just and reasonable to believe that the same special privilege of sanctification before birth was bestowed by God upon St. Joseph, whose dignity was greater, whose mission was of a higher order, and whose relations with the Saviour of the world were more intimate than those of the Prophet Jeremias, of the great Baptist, or of any other saint?

We shall not dwell longer on the intrinsic arguments in favour of the above privilege, but shall content ourselves to cite a few of the many authorities before us, holding the opinion we have adopted.

The learned Cornelius a Lapide writes: "Truly, if God gives this privilege of sanctification before birth to any other saint besides the Blessed Virgin, He would not deny it to St. Joseph, her spouse."*

The celebrated and pious Gerson defended the same opinion at the Council of Constance. "This dissimilitude," said the Chancellor of the famous University of Paris, "may be noted between Mary and Joseph, that Joseph, after contracting original sin, was sanctified in the womb by the baptism of the Spirit. So it is declared in the Jerusalem 0ffice, composed for St. Joseph."

Father Segneri, justly esteemed for piety, eloquence, and solid learning, writes: "St. Joseph was ennobled and singularly privileged with the honour of being the spouse of the Mother of God: a dignity which is a solid principle, from which it follows, with every mark of probability, that St. Joseph was not only sanctified, as we maintain, in his mother's womb, but that he was afterwards confirmed in grace, and exempt from all evil, so that no man—we say it boldly— no man on this earth ever was holier than Joseph." f

The Venerable Maria of Jesus of Agreda holds the same opinion. She writes: "St. Joseph was the greatest Saint of God on earth. . . . He ought to have been, as he was in reality, a prodigy of holiness, and by the special providence of God he was sanctified before his birth. . . . Although he had not the use of reason in his first sanctification, in which he was justified only from original sin, his mother was sensible of a new joy in the Holy Spirit; and without fully penetrating the mystery, she performed great acts of virtue, and believed that her child would become great before God and man." (Cite Mi/stique de Dieu).

The learned Trombelli writes: "Theologians have not been wanting, who have maintained that St. Joseph was sanctified in his mother's womb. Gerson, a name of great authority in theology, confirms this grace by the Breviary of Jerusalem, in which, he says, be read it. He is followed by Isodore Isolano, who, by many arguments, seeks to show the greater probability of this opinion. Among moderns, Father Reiss adorns it and establishes it with many proofs, averring that this opinion has not a few defenders, such as Carthagena, Diego de Valencia, Theophilos, and St. Chrysostom, cited by Isolano, and finally Cornelius a Lapide."

We shall cite but one more author, Father Vallejo, the devout Client of St. Joseph.

"The privilege of sanctification in his mother's womb," he writes, " was bestowed on the Baptist, who was born as the glorious Precursor of the Man-God. And whoever will consider the profound dignity of St. Joseph, who was born the chosen spouse of the Virgin Mary, and the putative father of Jesus, cannot but deem him entitled to this grace of presanctification, which adds a new degree of splendour to his sanctity." (Life of St. Joseph, p. 19.)

From the above arguments and authorities we conclude that the opinion that the glorious St. Joseph was sanctified in his mother's womb is tenable, and can be safely held and believed. The devout Client of St. Joseph will gladly adopt it, because it redounds to the greater glory of the Holy Family— Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.

SECTION IV.

St. Joseph, by a special Privilege from God, was Confirmed in Grace.

A celebrated writer, describing the glories of St. Peter's in Rome, says: "The mind expands" and grows " colossal" contemplating the beauty, the majesty, and sublimity of this greatest of temples in the Church of God.* The same may be said, in different order, of the heroic virtues of our great St. Joseph. When, alter long reading and thinking, we come close to see and examine the eminent virtues of our great Patriarch, the mind must "expand" and grow "colossal" to take in and comprehend the height, the width, and sublime beauty of this mighty spiritual edifice, not the work of the genius and wealth of man, but designed and constructed by the hands of the 0mnipotent Himself.

That St. Joseph was confirmed in grace is a tenable and well-grounded opinion. The writers who hold that St. Joseph was sanctified before his birth, maintain the above opinion also, and with the same arguments. This special privilege was conferred upon our Saint by the Almighty on account of his relations with Jesus and Mary. Suarez says it is certain that St. John the Baptist and the Apostles were confirmed in grace.* Cornelius a Lapide, from this, argues and concludes, that Almighty God would not and could not refuse to confer upon St. Joseph, His reputed father, and the chaste Spouse of the Immaculate Mother of God, any grace or privilege granted to any other Saint after the Blessed Virgin In one word, St. Joseph was confirmed in grace by the Almighty, on account of his dignity and sanctity, as reputed father of Jesus, husband of Mary, and head of the Holy Family.

We shall quote only a few of the many respectable authors before us.

The learned and eloquent Father Segneri writes : "St. Joseph was ennobled and singularly privileged with the honour of spouse of the Mother of God. ... St. Joseph was not only sanctified, as we maintain, in his mother's womb, but was afterwards confirmed in grace and exempt from evil." The devout client of St. Joseph, Father Vallejo, quotes many authorities for the above opinion, and says: "Hence, we may lawfully infer that the great St. Joseph was not only sanctified before appearing in the light of this world, but was also favoured with the use of understanding and free will. . . . This similarity to the Blessed Virgin, of loving God before birth, is conceded by great theologians to St. John the Baptist, and consequently to St. Joseph, a Saint to whom, in glory, and in the privileges of grace, his ministry and dignity give advantages over all the other blessed. Nor can we believe that God, who is so liberal of His favours, will deny the guardian and foster-father of His Son, the grace which He freely conceded to another Saint, who was not of so eminent a dignity, nor of so supreme a ministry. From the same motive we shall say that the foster-father of Jesus, the head, and in some sense, the superior of the Blessed Virgin, and of Christ as man, was confirmed in grace the instant he had the use of reason by an extraordinary favour of heaven. . . . The privilege of avoiding, by a special grace of heaven, all deliberate sins is conceded to St. John the Baptist by grave theologians, who rely on the authority of St. Augustine and a hymn of the Church; and I think that these doctors, whose arguments pass for solid with Suarez,* will not deny the same favour to St. Joseph when the reasons in his case are at least equal, if not superior" (Life, p. 36).

From the above sound arguments, we may safely conclude that St. Joseph was confirmed in grace like St. John the Baptist, and the Apostles, is a tenable and reasonable opinion. We the more readily hold and believe it, because it redounds to the greater glory of the Holy Family, Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.

Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, I offer to you my heart and soul.

Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, assist me in my last agony.

Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, may I breathe forth my soul in peace with you.

St. Joseph: His Life, His Virtues, His Privileges, His Power by The Very Rev. Archdeacon Kinane, P.P. - Chapter 4, Section 1

Part II

The Dignity, The Sanctity, And The Heroic Virtues of St. Joseph

CHAPTER IV.

The Dignity and heroic Virtues of St. Joseph.

SECTION I.

The dignity of St. Joseph. St. Joseph is exalted above all God's Saints; and ranks' next to the Blessed Virgin Mary herself.

THE dignity of a Saint may be estimated from the designs of God in his regard; from his relations with the Almighty, and from the place destined for him to fulfil in the scheme of Redemption. Thus in the 0ld Law, Abraham is elevated on a high pinnacle of sanctity because he was destined to be the father of God's people; Moses is regarded as a great Saint, because he was chosen by God to give the Divine Law to the Jews; Melchisedech is honoured, because his sacrifice was a figure of the great sacrifice of the New Law; King David, the model of the repentant sinner, is singled out for special honours, because God inspired him to sing His praises in hymns and canticles.

In the New Law, the twelve Apostles are held up to the admiration and veneration of the world; and why? Because of the dignity of the Apostolate; because they were chosen by God to be the preachers of His "Word, and the foundation stones of His Church. St. Peter is raised pre-eminently above the other Apostles; because 0ur Blessed Lord Jesus Christ chose him to be the rock on which He built His Church; because he was the divinely appointed head of the Sacred College; and because on him and his lawful successor, the Saviour of the world conferred the unique privilege of Infallibility in teaching the Universal Church. St. John the Baptist is held in special honour by the Church, and was sanctified in his mother's womb, because his mission was to point out to the world the long-expected Messias— "Behold the Lamb of God." The dignity, and hence the sanctity of the Blessed Virgin, were unspeakably exalted beyond that of all the Saints and Angels put together, as the learned Suarez teaches ; because her relations with God were of a higher order, and because she entered more fully and intimately into the scheme of man's Redemption. No relationship is nearer to a son than that of mother. Jesus Christ is the Son of Mary; the Sacred Body of Jesus, the Precious Blood by which mankind was redeemed, had their source in the Immaculate Heart of Mary. To use the words of St. Augustine, "The flesh of Christ is the flesh of Mary; and although it was raised to greater glory in His Resurrection; yet it still remained the same that was taken from her."•

The essence of the dignity of the Blessed Virgin consists in her intimate relation with the Saviour of the world, in the one title, Mother of God. "It is this awful title," writes Cardinal Newman, "which both illustrates and connects together the two prerogatives of Mary—her sanctity and her greatness. It is the issue of her sanctity; it is the source of her greatness. What dignity can be too great to attribute to her who is so closely bound up, as intimately 0 with the Eternal Word, as a mother is with her son? What outfit of sanctity, what fulness and redundance of grace, what exuberance of merit, must have been hers, on the supposition that the Fathers justify, that her Maker regarded them at all, and took them into account when He condescended not to abhor the Virgin's womb. ... Is it surprising, then, that on the one hand she should be Immaculate in her Conception; or on the other, that she should be exalted as a queen with a crown of twelve stare? Men sometimes wonder that we call her 'Mother of life,' 'of mercy,' 'of salvation;' what are all these titles compared to that one name, 'Mother of God.'" (Letter to Dr. Pusey on Eirenicon, p 67.)

We now come to examine what was the dignity of St. Joseph. With the above fundamental principles before our mind we hesitate not in asserting that St. Joseph was exalted in dignity above any Saint of the Old or New Testament: of course the Blessed Virgin alone excepted. And why? Because his heavenly appointed mission was of a higher order; because his relation with the Redeemer of the world was more close and intimate; and, finally, because he played a more important part than other Saints in the scheme of man's Redemption.

Let us first try to conceive, and to realise the exalted dignity of St. Joseph from his relation to the Blessed Virgin, that is, "Husband of Mary." The Blessed Virgin, by the title of Mother of God, is exalted unspeakably above all beings created, or thatever will be created, by the Almighty; St. Joseph, by the inspiration of heaven, was chosen to be the spouse of the Blessed Virgin; and therefore in a certain sense he shares in all her glories and dignity. Mary, as real wife, was the flesh of his flesh and the bone of his bone; and, as the husband is head of the wife, so St. Joseph in that sense was the head of the Blessed Virgin.

A few passages from Saints, and other celebrated writers, will tell more eloquently the dignity of St. Joseph, as Spouse of Mary, than our cold words.

St. Leonard of Port-Maurice writes: "The Evangelists say very little of the virtues and life of St. Joseph; but when they call him the Spouse of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, they give him the most glorious title possible; for he was nearest in every way to Mary, the purest creature ever made by God Almighty."

St. John Damascene says: "Husband of Mary! ineffable expression, which leaves nought to say." "Husband of Mary," writes the learned Suarez; "this, therefore, was his first great prerogative."*

0ne passage more from the celebrated Gerson, the panegyrist of St. Joseph, who thus spoke of our Saint at the Council of Constance: "Let me here exclaim, 0 Joseph, how wonderful thy sublimity! 0 incomparable dignity that the Mother of God, the Queen of Heaven, the Mistress of the world, should not disdain, 0 great St. Joseph, to call thee lord. Truly, I know not, 0 orthodox Fathers, which is most admirable here—the humility of Mary, or the dignity of Joseph."

Though the dignity of St. Joseph, as husband of Mary, guardian of the purest and holiest creature that ever came from the hands of the Almighty Creator, is great and exalted; yet far greater still, and transcendently more exalted is the dignity of our Saint, from his intimate relation with Jesus, the Saviour of the world.

As we have seen in a preceding chapter, the two Evangelists trace the genealogy of 0ur Blessed Lord, not from the Blessed Virgin, but through St. Joseph, as head of the house and family. "And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ" (Matt. i. 16). "And Jesus Himself was beginning about the age of thirty years, being (as was supposed) the Son of Joseph" (Luke, iii. 23). Thus the two Evangelists begin their Gospel, by elevating St. Joseph on a high pinnacle of dignity and glory. But the most instructive measure of the dignity of St. Joseph, is the fact that he was styled, and passed among men, as the Father of Jesus the Saviour of the world? "And Jesus Himself," says the Gospel, "was beginning about the age of thirty years being (as was supposed) the Son of Joseph" (Luke iii. 23). Again, "his father and mother were wondering at those things which were spoken concerning them. . . . And his parents went every year to Jerusalem . . . behold thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing." (Luke,ii.) The dignity of being the real husband of Mary, the Immaculate Mother of God is high indeed; but unspeakably higher still is the dignity of being the reputed father of Jesus Christ.

St. Bernard puts it thus: "The nature and dignities of St. Joseph are summed up in the title wherewith God honoured him, in such a way that all styled him and believed him to be the father of Jesus."

The dignity of St. Joseph ascends highet and higher still, and becomes, so to speak, lost to our view, the more we meditate on his mission, and on his relation with 0ur Blessed Saviour. St. John the Baptist was sanctified in his mother's womb, because his mission was to point out to mankind the Saviour; but St. Joseph was appointed by God to be the guardian and protector of the Infant Redeemer. After the Blessed Virgin, St. Joseph was the first on earth that adored and paid homage to the Incarnate Son of God. St. Joseph ministered to the wants of Jesus even before He was born, by his care and attention to His Blessed Mother. During the Divine Infancy, the hands of St. Joseph were privileged to supply the want and comforts of Jesus and Mary. When danger and death hovered round the cradle of the Infant Saviour St. Joseph was chosen by God to be His guardian and deliverer. Countless times did St. Joseph carry in his arms, and press to his bosom, the Divine Babe. From the Nativity of Jesus, to the day of St. Joseph's death, our Saint moved and lived in the Divine presence of the Incarnate Son of God. These privileges were granted to no other Saint. Nay more, the Gospel says, that Jesus obeyed and was subject to St. Joseph. Jesus, Mary, and Joseph composed the Holy Family; and St. Joseph was head of the Holy Family. After Mary, no relation could be more intimate with Jesus than that of St. Joseph; and hence, after the Immaculate Mother of God, the dignity of St. Joseph is higher and more exalted than that of any other Saint of the Old or New Testament.

A devout Client of St. Joseph writes thus: * It is commonly said that the first-born, and the first in any order—for example, the first man, the first martyr, the first Apostle, the first Angel—enjoys certain advantages in glory over others who have not the priority. St. Joseph was the first man who knew and adored Jesus Christ; the first who spoke to Him; the first who suffered hardship and exile for Jesus; the first Apostle who manifested the Saviour to the world, and announced Him in Egypt; the first who made a vow or profession of virginity; the first Christian; the first by whom Jesus was offered to His Eternal Father in the Temple; the first to whom was manifestly revealed the Mystery of the Incarnation, hidden for centuries. St. Joseph was the first-born of the Church, and for this reason the first in gifts, and the greatest in authority and power, like Ruben, to whom his father Jacob left at his death the greatest part of his inheritance. All these advantages of having been the first, give St. Joseph so many degrees of preeminence among the Saints, and all but render his grandeur infinite. Combined with that of his most holy spouse, they form an order and a hierarchy exceeding all the blessed. Finally St. Joseph was the first defender of the virginal purity of the Mother of God." (Vallejo, p. 251.)

Some may object to us the sublime eulogium paid to St. John the Baptist by 0ur Blessed Saviour Himself. "Amen I say to you, there hath not risen among them that are horn of women a greater than John the Baptist." (Matt. ii. 11). Now, in the first place, if this text were taken in its strictest sense, it would prove that St. John was as great and holy as the Blessed Virgin, nay, as our Divine Lord Himself; for both were born of women. Therefore the sense of necessity must be limited, and hence we assert the text does not include the Holy Family—Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.

We may here remark that St. Jerome and many other Fathers hold that the comparison was between St. John and the Saints of the 0ld Law only. The Saviour exalted the Baptist above the Prophets : his office was of a higher order: the Prophets foretold the coming of the Messias; the Baptist pointed Him out to men saying, "Behold the Lamb •f God."»

The mission of St. Joseph, as we have already said, transcended that of the great Baptist, as well as that of the Prophets and Apostles. St. Joseph was the reputed father of Jesus; he saved the very life of the Saviour of the world; he watched over His Sacred infancy ; countless times he carried Jesus in his arms, and pressed the Redeemer to his bosom ;and during his life by the labour of his hands he supplied the wants and comforts of the Holy Family.

True also that in the Litany of the Saints, which forms a part of the Liturgy of the Catholic Church, St. John the Baptist is invoked before St. Joseph; but precedency in the order of the Litany does not imply greater excellence or merit. For instance, the Patriarchs and Prophets are invoked before St. Peter; yet who will deny that St. Peter the Vicar of Jesus Christ, the Prince of the Apostles, the Head of the Church, was a greater Saint, and had a higher mission than the Patriarchs and Prophets. In like manner, greater, higher, and holier was the Mission of St. Joseph, and unspeakably more intimate his union with Jesus Christ than that of St. John the Baptist.

St. Joseph: His Life, His Virtues, His Privileges, His Power by The Very Rev. Archdeacon Kinane, P.P. - Chapter 3, Section 14

SECTION. XIV.
The Death of St. Joseph.

Where, and at what age, the holy soul of St. Joseph winged its flight to the bosom of Abraham, we know not for certain, as the Gospel is silent. After the memorable occasion of the finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple, the Gospel, as we have seen, says, the Holy Family returned to Nazareth; and the last word about St. Joseph is—Jesus "was subject to them;" that is, Jesus, after having completed His twelfth year, lived under the authority and guardianship of His reputed father St. Joseph, and His holy Mother the Blessed Virgin.

At this distance of time and place we can contemplate and meditate on the Holy Family at Nazareth. We can see St. Joseph, forgetful of himself, busily engaged to maintain in comfort and happiness the Mother and the Child. We can see the Child Jesus, from time to time even, helping with His Divine Hands, St. Joseph in his workshop. We can contemplate the Blessed Mother, assiduous in keeping her house neat and clean, and every way in her power, making happy the Son and the Husband. Now and again, Mary and Joseph would kneel, and with reverential awe, look into the Divine countenance of the Saviour of the world, and adore, love, and render supreme homage to the Incarnate and Eternal Son of God. The eyes of all heaven were riveted on the "Holy House," when Jesus, Mary, and Joseph knelt, prayed, and adored the Eternal Father. At the Transfiguration, 0ur Blessed Lord condescended to console Peter, James, and John, who were afterwards to witness His Agony in the Garden; and one faint ray of the Divinity rapt them into an ecstasy of delight. So we can well imagine that our Blessed Lord, in the Holy House at Nazareth, allowed from time to time the Divinity to shine forth through the Humanity, and, as the Eternal Son of God, manifested Himself in all His heavenly glory to Mary and Joseph. At the Nativity, a "multitude of the heavenly army " appeared to the shepherds, singing, "Glory to God in the highest." So we can well imagine, that at intervals this heavenly music broke upon the ears of Mary and Joseph; and that their eyes beheld countless millions of Angels, nay, the nine choirs of celestial Spirits, paying homage to their Lord. How long this paradise on earth lasted, how long St. Joseph enjoyed this foretaste of heaven, before he was permitted to drink of the " torrents of God's pleasure," as we remarked before, we know not for certain.

As to the precise time of the death of St. Joseph, the ancient Fathers differ in opinion. Some are of opinion that he lived to a very old age, and that he witnessed the Passion, Death, and the Ascension of 0ur Blessed Lord. This opinion does not appear to accord with reason; for if St. Joseph witnessed the Passion and Death of Jesus, his name would most probably be mentioned by the Evangelists; and, secondly, 0ur Blessed Lord, at dying, would leave His holy Mother in the charge of her faithful husband, and hence would not have confided her, as He did, to St. John the Evangelist.

The common opinion therefore, which the Bollandists say is "little less than certain," and which is supported by reason, as well as by the great majority of the Fathers, is, that St. Joseph died in the arms of Jesus and Mary, a little before the public Ministry, or preaching of 0ur Blessed Lord. That is, the Holy Family, Jesus, Mary, and Joseph lived together at Nazareth for eighteen years after the Finding in the Temple; and that St. Joseph died when Jesus was about thirty years of age. This opinion is conformable to reason; for during the Sacred Infancy, and up to the time of His public Ministry, the name of St. Joseph is mentioned by the Evangelists in connection with all the great events of 0ur Blessed Lord's Life; yet, after the public Ministry, the name of St. Joseph, does not even once occur in any of the Gospels; thereby clearly indicating that he was no longer alive. Besides, it would not appear fitting, that the Jews could point to the reputed father of the Saviour, when the preaching, and stupendous miracles of Jesus went to prove Him the Son of God, and that His Father was in heaven.

This opinion also is supported by the great majority of ancient and modern writers.

The Bollandists say: "How many years Joseph survived the Finding of Jesus in the Temple at the age of twelve, and His return to Nazareth, cannot be precisely said with even probable conjecture; except that it is almost certain, and considered by many as beyond all doubt, that he died before Jesus began to manifest Himself to the world, inasmuch as the Evangelists make no further mention of him, .... Nor indeed did it seem fit, that He, who by His stupendous miracles, was to prove Himself the Son of God, should have in the eyes of all, one who was nominally and legally His father."

"It is believed," says another critic, "and 'with great probability, that Joseph died before Christ began to preach the Gospel; and before the marriage of Cana; where Jesus was invited with His Mother and Disciples. 0n that occasion Joseph is not mentioned; nor is he in the whole history of 0ur Lord's public Ministry. At His death, Jesus commended His Mother to St. John, which shows that St. Joseph was no longer alive, for Christ is not the author of division or divorce." (Tillemont).

The learned Suarez, after reviewing the reasons and authorities on both sides, concludes: "I think that St. Joseph did not die immediately after Christ's twelfth year; because St. Luke, when he says that the Child returned to Nazareth with His parents, and was there subject to their orders, shows that He lived for some time with them. And it is credible that St. Joseph survived to maintain Jesus to His thirtieth year, when He was to begin the preaching of the Gospel/'*

Some are of opinion that our great Saint died where he had lived, in the " Holy House'' at Nazareth. Others, with the Bollandists, Venerable Bede, and St. Adamnan, hold that he died in Jerusalem, where he had gone on the solemn feast of the Pasch to worship in the Temple; and almost all agree that he was buried in the valley of Josaphat in the tomb of his ancestors.

Although the age of St. Joseph, at his death, is not known for certain; yet it can be told with a fair approach to accuracy. In a preceding section we have seen, that St. Joseph, at his Espousals with the Blessed Virgin, was a young man. Venerable Marie of Jesus, of Agreda, says thirty-three; let us add to this, thirty, the age of our Blessed Lord at the time of His public Ministry, when St. Joseph died, and we have a fairly accurate estimate of the age of our great Patriarch at the time of his death.

At death we covet the prayers of holy souls to help us on the passage to eternity; happy the death of St Joseph, who was helped and comforted by the hands and prayers of the Blessed Virgin herself. At death, we covet the presence of God's minister, that the departing soul may get the last blessing, the last absolution; happy the death of St. Joseph, whose departing soul was absolved and blessed by Jesus Christ Himself. The presence and the attentions of a dear and holy friend sweeten the pains of death; sweet, peaceful, and happy, the death of St. Joseph, who died in the arms of Jesus and Mary. In the hour of trial the faithful friend proves his gratitude and love; so at the death of St. Joseph, his holy spouse, the Blessed Virgin, endeavoured to reward him, for his loving and reverential attentions and kindness to her, during the long period of thirty years. If Jesus rewards, as He does, a cup of cold water given in His name; what choicest heavenly graces and blessings, did He not shower upon His dying reputed father St. Joseph, who assisted Him before He was born; who first after Mary, adored Him in the manger at Bethlehem; who saved His life from the cruelty of Herod; who carried Him in his arms through the wild desert, and over the burning sands of Egypt; who, by the labour of his hands, supplied the wants and comforts of Jesus; in one word, who lived for Jesus, who is now dying of love for Jesus—how Jesus rewarded our dying Saint, the mind cannot conceive, nor the tongue express.

The pious reader will excuse us for inserting a few passages, out of the many we have before us, from the devout Clients of St. Joseph. Father Binet writes, "St. Joseph died in the arms of Jesus and Mary; a happiness which excites feelings of the deepest devotion. His passage to the other world was more a triumph than a death. He finally breathed his last sigh which Jesus and Mary received. 0n that occasion all the court of heaven descended to venerate that body, in which had dwelt so great and holy a soul, adorned with those riches of virtue which the Gospel sums up in the one word, 'just' ".

"0h! how at that moment, the last of his life, must not Jesus have rewarded, with a torrent of confidence, him, who, as a father, had borne a father's fears and toils. 'Go,' must the Angels have said;' go, 0 new Precursor, and bear to the holy Patriarchs the tidings of their coming liberation, which now appears as the dawn of the Sun of Justice above the horizon, foretokening happiness; meanwhile we weave thee this crown of roses, and lilies, and this starry robe which thy purity deserves and thy dignity of father of Jesus, a title never bestowed on Angels. Already is thy throne prepared at the right hand of that which awaits thy spouse. Thou shalt be the great counsellor in the court of heaven, the treasurer of the riches and graces, which the Almighty Father dispenses; thou shalt be the Protector of the future Church, and the advocate of its children in all necessities and cares.' The Mother of God, speaking with the sweet eloquence of her eyes, more than with the tender harmony of her voice, thanked him for his care in ministering to her with such signs of gratitude as kindled new flames of divine love in the noble heart of St. Joseph. In these colloquies that splendid light gave its last gleams, like the sun when near its setting."*

Pious souls can write with touching sweetness on St. Joseph, but the Saints alone can conceive, and express thoughts worthy of so noble a theme. "Let us consider this blessed Patriarch," writes St. Leonard of Port Maurice, "in the arms of Jesus and Mary, at the moment of giving up his soul to his Creator. See him stretched on his poor bed, Jesus on one side, and Mary on the other, surrounded by a multitude of Angels, Archangels, and Seraphim, who, with a respectful attention, are waiting to receive this holy soul. 0 God, who shall tell us with what feelings, at this supreme moment, Joseph took a last leave of Jesus and Mary." What acts of thankfulness, of supplication, of humility, on the part of this holy old man! His eyes and his heart speak, alone his tongue is silent. But how much there is in his silence! He looks at Mary, and Mary at him; and with what love and veneration! Then he turns his dying eyes on Jesus, and Jesus returns the look, but with what tenderness! He takes the hand of Jesus, and presses it to his heart: and covers it with kisses, and bedews it with his tears, and says to Him, from time to time, less with his lips than in his heart. "My Son, my much loved Son, I recommend my soul to Thee!" And then, placing that hand on his heart, he falls into a swoon of love. Ah! Joseph! if you could but keep fast hold of that hand, which is Life, you would not die! 0h, how sweet it would be to die, holding the hand of Jesus!

"The soul is on the point of leaving the body; it has already half taken flight, but at the sight of Jesus and Mary it pauses: it cannot break its chain. I repeat, Joseph, if you do not cease to look upon Him who is your life, you cannot die. Tender and Divine Redeemer, Jesus, holy Mary, Joseph cannot quit this land of exile, if you will not give him leave! Jesus lifts His hand. He blesses and embraces His much-loved father, and Joseph expires in the arms of Jesus/'

The honeyed pen of St. Francis of Sales writes: "A Saint, who had so loved in life, could only die of love; for his soul could not love Jesus enough amidst the distractions of this life; and having fulfilled the duty required of him in tending the childhood of his Lord, what remained but that he should say to the Eternal Father, 'I have finished the work which Thou gavest me to do' (St. John, xvii. 4): and to the Son: 'My Child, as your heavenly Father intrusted your body into my hands on the day that you came into the world, so on this day of my departure from this world, I remit my spirit into yours.' Such, I imagine, was the death of this great Patriarch, the most noble death of all, due to the most noble life which any creature had ever led—a death which Angels themselves would covet if they were capable of dying."

The following extracts, on the death of St. Joseph, are taken from the famous work, "Cite Mystique de Dieu," by the Venerable Marie of Jesus, of Agreda:—

"This most holy Lady, knowing, through her infused knowledge, that the last hour of her chaste spouse in this place of exile was very near, went to her adorable Son, and said to Him: 'My Lord and my God, the time for the death of Thy servant Joseph, which Thou hast determined by an eternal will approaches. I beseech Thee, Lord, by Thy infinite goodness to assist him in this hour, so that his death may be as precious to Thee as his life has been agreeable. Remember, my Son, the love and humility of Thy servant —his merits—his virtues, and the pains he has taken to preserve Thy life and mine.'

"0ur Saviour replied to her: 'My Mother, your requests are pleasing to Me, and the merits of Joseph are in My thoughts. I will now assist him, and I will give him so eminent a place among the princes of My people, that it will be a subject of admiration for the Angels, and a motive for praises to them and to men. I will do not for any nation that which I will do for your Spouse.' 0ur august Lady returned thanks to her most sweet Son for this promise.

"The most humble Joseph, wishing to close his life by the seal of humility, asked pardon of his holy Spouse for the faults he might have committed in her service as a feeble man of earthly mould. He entreated her to assist him in this last hour, and to intercede for him. He testified, above all, his gratitude to our Adorable Saviour, for the benefits that he had received from His most liberal hand during all his life, and particularly in his sickness. Then taking leave of his blessed Spouse, he said to her: 'Thou art blessed among all women and chosen above all creatures. Let Angels and men praise thee. Let all nations know and exalt thy dignity. Let the name of the Most High through thee be known, adored, and glorified in all future ages, and eternally praised by all the blessed Spirits, for having created thee so pleasing in His eyes. I trust to meet thee in the heavenly land.'"

"After this, the man of God addressed our Lord Jesus Christ, and wishing to speak to His Majesty with profound respect, he made every effort to kneel on the ground. But the sweet Jesus approaching received him in His arms, and the Saint supporting his head upon His bosom, said: 'My Lord and my God, Son of the Eternal Father, Creator and Redeemer of the world, give Thy eternal benediction to Thy servant, who is the work of Thy hands. Pardon the faults I have committed in Thy service and in Thy presence. I confess Thee, I glorify Thee, I render to Thee, with a contrite and humble heart, eternal thanks for having chosen me, by Thy ineffable goodness, from among men, to be the spouse of Thine 0wn Mother. Grant, Lord, that Thy own glory may be the theme of my gratitude through all eternity.'

"The Redeemer of the world gave him His benediction. 'Rest in peace,' He said; 'the grace of My Heavenly Father and Mine be with thee. Proclaim the good tidings to My Prophets and Saints, who await thee, and tell them that their redemption is nigh.' As our beloved Redeemer pronounced these words, the most happy Joseph expired in His arms, and His Divine Majesty closed his eyes. The angels chanted the sweetest hymns of praise, and, by order of the supreme King, they conducted this most holy soul into the company of the Saints, who recognised him as the reputed father of the Redeemer of the world, and His greatly-beloved one, who merited singular veneration. He imparted a new joy to this innumerable assembly by announcing to them, according to the commandment of the Lord, that their redemption would not long be delayed.'

"We must not omit to mention that, although the precious death of St. Joseph was preceded by so long a sickness, and such severe sufferings, these were not the chief causes of it. He might have lived longer, notwithstanding these maladies, if the effects of the ardent love that burned in his chaste bosom had not been superadded; for this happy death was rather a triumph of love than the penalty of sin. The Lord suspended the supernatural aid by which He had preserved the strength of His servant, and hindered the violence of his love from destroying him; and this help failing, nature was vanquished. This victory sundered the ties that detained his holy soul in the prison of the body, in which consists our death. Thus, love was the last of his maladies, and it was also the greatest and most glorious, since by it death is the sleep of the body, and the principle of life."

At the death of 0ur Blessed Lord, we know from the Gospel that many of the Saints arose from their graves, and appeared in the streets of Jerusalem. St. Matthew says: "And the veil of the temple was rent in two from the top even to the bottom, and the earth quaked, and the rocks were rent: And the graves were opened, and the bodies of the saints that had slept arose. And coming out of the tombs after his resurrection came into the holy city and appeared to many (Matt, xxvii. 51). That the bodies of these Saints never again returned to their former dust, but ascended to heaven with their Redeemer, is held by St. Thomas and other great authorities. The Angelic Doctor writes : "It may be asked what became of those who rose with our Lord? For we must believe that they returned to life to be witnesses of Christ's Resurrection. Some think they died again, relapsing into their former dust, like Lazarus and others, whom 0ur Lord raised up. But these authorities are unworthy of credit; for it would be a greater torture for these Saints to die a second time, than not to have been raised to life. We must then believe, that the Saints, who rose with Jesus, ascended with Him to heaven" (Matt, xxvii.)*

That St. Joseph arose from the dead with the "bodies of the Saints," and ascended to heaven with 0ur Blessed Lord, is a pious and well-grounded belief. St. Bernardine of Sienna says: "We cannot affirm as certain, but we may piously believe, that Jesus Christ the Son of God, conceded to His foster father the same privilege as to His Mother, that from the day of His glorious Resurrection, St. Joseph might be body and soul with Christ, as His holy spouse, the Blessed Virgin, was ere long to be; and also that the Holy Family, composed of Christ, the Blessed Virgin, and St. Joseph, who lived in the same toils and same union of charity on earth, might live body and soul in glory in heaven."

The above opinion is confirmed from the fact that no relic of the body of St. Joseph has ever been found in any part of the world. It is easy to believe, that Divine Providence would not have hidden from the veneration of the faithful, so precious a treasure as the relics of St Joseph, did they exist.

In heaven then, as in the Holy House at Nazareth, is the Holy Family, with their glorified bodies, Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.

Pious REFLECTIONS.

My soul! what a multitude of holy and edifying thoughts the life of St. Joseph suggests to the Christian mind. We see St. Joseph, though of the royal house and family of David, occupied at the humble business of an artisan. St. Joseph was sanctified and chosen by the Almighty to be the spouse and guardian of the Immaculate Mother of God. After Mary, St. Joseph first knew, adored, and loved the Incarnate Son of God. St. Joseph is the reputed father of Jesus, and saved His life from the cruelty of Herod. St. Joseph is in constant and intimate communication with Heaven, through the medium of Angels. 0n all occasions prompt and docile was the obedience of St. Joseph to the calls of God. Countless times lovingly and reverentially did St. Joseph carry in his arms the Infant Jesus over the hills of Judea, and through the deserts, and over the sands of Egypt. With a cheerful, joyous heart, for about thirty years, did St. Joseph toil and labour to supply the wants and comforts of Jesus and Mary. And finally, having fulfilled his mission, sweetly and calmly did St. Joseph breathe forth his holy soul to God in the arms of Jesus and Mary.

RESOLUTIONS.

In imitation of St. Joseph, I resolve, by the aid of Divine grace, first, to obey promptly all the calls and secret inspirations of Almighty God. Secondly, in order to sanctify my daily occupations, I resolve to offer to God's greater glory each and every act of the day, in union with the life and death of Jesus; in union with all the Masses daily offered up to Heaven throughout Christendom; and in union with Jesus in all the tabernacles in the Catholic Church. Thirdly, I resolve every day to beg of God the grace of a happy death; like St. Joseph, to die in the peace and love of Jesus and Mary. 0 merciful God, through the name, love, and merits of Jesus, grant me the grace to keep these resolutions. St. Joseph, obtain for me the grace to lead a holy life and die a happy death.

PRAYERS.

A Prayer to obtain the grace of a Happy Death.

"0 Lord Jesus Christ, by the bitterness Thou wast pleased to suffer on the Cross for love of me, especially when Thy sacred soul departed from Thy body, have mercy upon my poor soul, now and at tie hour of my death, that I may be admitted to the immediate vision and possession of Thee for all eternity. Amen."

A Prayer to St. Joseph to obtain the grace of a Holy Life and Happy Death.

0 great St. Joseph, obtain for me from Jesus the grace to keep all God's commandments, and to promptly obey the secret calls and inspirations of Heaven. St. Joseph, obtain for me the grace to do all my actions to please God alone. 0 St. Joseph, ask of Jesus, for me, the grace never to commit a mortal sin. 0 my dear St. Joseph, watch over me during life, he with me at death, and obtain for me Paradise. St. Joseph, spouse of Mary, beg of the Blessed Virgin to obtain for me, from Jesus her Son, the grace to lead a holy life and die a happy death. Amen.

A Prayer to St. Joseph for the grace of a Happy Death.

0 glorious St. Joseph, the model, the patron, and the comforter of the dying, I now beg thy protection at the last moment of my life; obtain, I beseech thee, that 1 may die the death of the just.

St. Joseph: His Life, His Virtues, His Privileges, His Power by The Very Rev. Archdeacon Kinane, P.P. - Chapter 3, Sections 11 - 13

SECTION XI.
The Return of the Holy Family from Egypt.
With what anxious care did Heaven look down upon the holy Exiles in a strange land. The hour of their delivery was fast approaching; Herod, the monster of cruelty, was on his death-bed; the flesh rotting off his bones; the tongue that gave the order for the massacre of the Holy Innocent, and for the murder of the Infant Saviour, was being devoured with the most loathsome worms; and so intolerable was the filthy stench, that no one could approach the room of the dying tyrant. The records of history, either ancient or modern, narrate no parallel of tho death with which it pleased the Eternal Father to visit this enemy of His Divine Son.
Herod is gone to his account, and quickly a heavenly messenger is dispatched by God to convey the news to the Holy Family. To St. Joseph alone the important information was communicated. "But," says the Gospel, "when Herod was dead, behold an Angel of the Lord appeared in sleep to Joseph in Egypt, saying: Arise and take the child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel. For they are dead that sought the life of the child. Who arose and took the child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel. But hearing that Archelaus reigned in Judea in room of Herod his father, he was afraid to go thither, and being warned in sleep retired into the quarters of Galilee. And coming he dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was said by the prophets: That he shall be called a Nazarite" (Matt, ii. 19-23).
Though gladdening and welcome was the news of returning to their fond country and home to the hearts of exiles, yet far more happy was the Holy Family in hearing and obeying the will of the Almighty. Nothing daunted, by the well-known length of the journey, and its fatigues now known to them by experience, joyously and happily Jesus, Mary and Joseph set out on their way, anxious to breathe again the air of their native hills. Adopting the opinion of St. Thomas that 0ur Blessed Lord at this time was seven years old, or that of Cardinal Baronius that He was nine, we can well conceive how holy and divine was the conversation of the Holy Family, beguiling the fatigues of the day, and how often in their secret souls Mary and Joseph adored and loved the Saviour of the world. We can well conceive that, now and again, during the journey through the desert, sweet exquisite fruit ripened on the wild trees, which, recognising the Lord of nature, bowed down in homage, that Jesus might pluck and eat. We can imagine how the wild beasts, roaming through the desert in all the native freedom of unbridled liberty, the terror of all travellers, acknowledged the Lord of creation, and bowed before and licked the feet of the Child Jesus.
Most probably the Holy Family returned to Judea by the easiest and shortest route; and most likely intended to settle in Jerusalem, or in its vicinity, in order to be near the Temple, as well as to have opportunity of holy conversation with the great servants of God, Zachary and St. Elizabeth.
Some writers think it more probable that the Holy Family set out straight for their home at Nazareth, by the road that led through Judea, as being more convenient, and more frequented by travellers. 0n reaching Judea St. Joseph was startled by a new danger. Herod was dead; but his son, Archelaus, who inherited much of the cruelty and jealousy of his father, reigned in his place. St. Joseph was puzzled, hesitated, and feared to proceed further, lest he should expose to risk or danger the safety of the Child Jesus. In his doubts, Heaven, as usual, came to his relief; God's Angel appeared to him in sleep, and told him to retire into Galilee, which was governed by a kind, humane prince, Herod Antipas. Promptly, as usual, did St. Joseph obey the voice of the Almighty, and with his precious charge "retired to the quarters of Galilee."
Home at all times has a sweet sound; and after long absence, and after the fatigues and privations of a long journey, the cherished name sounds dearer and sweeter still; hence we can well imagine with what gladdened hearts the Holy Family took possession of their old and fond home "The Holy House" at Nazareth. "And coming he dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was said by the Prophets: That he shall be called a Nazarite."
An Act of Consecration to St. Joseph.
0 glorious Patriarch and Patron of the Catholic Church! 0 Virgin Spouse of the Virgin Mother of God. 0 Guardian and foster-father of the Word Incarnate! In the presence of Jesus and Mary I choose thee this day to be my guardian, my patron, and my protector.
0 thou, whom God has made the head of the Holy Family, accept me, I beseech thee, though utterly unworthy, to be a poor little servant in thy " Holy House." Present me to thy Immaculate Spouse; ask her also to adopt me as her child. "With her, pray that I may constantly think of Jesus, and serve Him faithfully to the end of my life.
0 my tender and holy Father, I hereby consecrate myself to thee. 0 thou head of the Holy Family on earth, in faithful imitation of Jesus and Mary, I place myself and all my concerns under thy care and protection. To thee, after Jesus and Mary, I consecrate my body and soul, with all their senses and faculties, my spiritual progress, my home, and all my affairs and undertakings. Forsake me not, but adopt me as a servant and child of the Holy Family. Watch over me at all times, but especially at the last awful hour of my life. Then visit, console and strengthen me with the presence of Jesus and Mary; that with them and thee, I may praise, and enjoy the Adorable Trinity in paradise for all eternity. Amen.
SECTION XII.
The Presentation by the Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph of our Divine Lord Jesus Christ in the Temple.
Not to break the thread of the Gospel narrative according to St. Matthew, who makes no mention of the Presentation in the Temple, we reserved on purpose to the present that important event in the life of 0ur Blessed Lord. As we write chiefly for the instruction and edification of the poor and uneducated, we shall pass over in silence the controversy among the learned as to the exact time of the Presentation in the Temple. According to the common and received opinion, the Presentation took place alter the adoration of the Wise Men, before the flight into Egypt, and when our Divine Lord Jesus Christ was about forty days old.
In the Presentation of the Child Jesus, what infinite homage, praise, adoration, thanksgiving, and love, did the Incarnate Son of God render to His Eternal Father! 0 thrice blessed St. Joseph, whose arms were privileged to bear to the Temple this supreme offering.
The Gospel of St. Luke thus narrates it:—" And after the days of her Purification, according to the law of Moses, were accomplished, they carried him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord. As it is written in the law of the Lord. Every male opening the womb shall be called holy to the Lord. And to offer a sacrifice according as it is written in the law of the Lord, a pair of turtle doves, or two young pigeons. And behold there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Ghost was in him. And he had received an answer from the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death before he had seen the Christ of the Lord. And he came by the Spirit into the Temple. And when his parents brought in the child Jesus, to do as for Him according to the custom of the law. He also took him into his arms, and blessed God and said: Now thou dost dismiss thy servant, 0 Lord, according to Thy word in peace. Because my eyes have seen thy salvation. Which thou hast prepared before the face of all peoples. A light to the revelation of the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people, Israel. And his father and mother were wondering at those things which were spoken concerning him. And Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary his mother: Behold this child is set for the fall, and for the resurrection of many in Israel, and for a sign which shall be contradicted. And thy own soul a sword shall pierce, that out of many hearts thoughts may be revealed" (Luke, ii. 22-35).
The distance from Bethlehem to Jerusalem is about six miles; this was the first journey of the Holy Family, and was performed before the Child Jesus was forty days old. Lovingly and tenderly did Mary fold in her warmest mantle the Divine Babe; and every now and again St. Joseph, to help the delicate Mother, carried in his arms the Infant Saviour of the world. The love and care of St. Joseph lightened for Jesus and Mary the fatigues of the journey. They arrive at Jerusalem, and the gates of the Temple open wide to receive the Lord of Glory. The words of the royal Prophet describing the future Glorious Ascension of 0ur Lord Jesus Christ into Heaven may here be applied to the Presentation in the Temple. "Lift up your gates, 0 ye princes, and be ye lifted up, 0 eternal gates, and the King of Glory shall enter in. Who is the King of Glory? The Lord who is strong and mighty in battle. Lift up your gates, 0 ye princes, and be ye lifted up, 0 eternal gates, and the King of Glory shall enter in. Who is the King of Glory? The Lord of hosts is the King of Glory" (Ps. xxiii. 7-10).
All Heaven was looking down in reverential awe, as St. Joseph took Jesus in his arms and presented Him to His Eternal Father. The Father accepts the infinite praise, homage, adoration, and love rendered to Him, in behalf of all mankind, by His "well-beloved Son." Holy Simeon, who had received a promise from God, that his eyes, before being closed in death, would see the Saviour of the world, " came by the spirit into the Temple," by revelation recognised the Redeemer of the world, took into his arms, out of the hands of St. Joseph, the Child Jesus, and then, in an ecstasy of supreme happiness, raised his eyes to heaven, "blessed God," and prayed Him to take away his soul, for his eyes had seen the Saviour of the world. Having discharged his duty to the Eternal Father and His Incarnate Son, holy Simeon turned to the "father and mother" of Jesus, and with uplifted hands "blessed them," and congratulated them, on being chosen by God, to be the holy parents and guardians of the Redeemer of the world.
Let us frequently during the day offer to the Eternal Father our souls with their faculties, our hearts with their affections, our bodies with their senses, in union with the Presentation in the Temple of Jesus by His parents, Mary and Joseph; in union with the Most Adorable Sacrifice of the Mass daily offered up on countless altars; and in union with the infinite praise, adoration, homage, and love offered by the same Jesus from all the tabernacles in Christendom.
Simeon was holy and happy when he received into his arms the Saviour of the world; holier and happier ought we to be, when we receive, not into our arms, but into our very breasts, the same Saviour in the Holy Communion. Would that each of us could say with Simeon, after holy Communion: "Now thou dost dismiss thy servant, 0 Lord, according to thy word in peace. Because my eyes have seen thy salvation;" or with St. Paul: "I desire to he dissolved and he with Christ. For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain" (Phil. i. 21).
0n this occasion, Mary, though an Immaculate Virgin, after, as well as before, the birth of her Divine Son, to fulfil all justice, to conceal her exalted dignity and unique privileges, as well as to give an example of profound humility, made the usual sin offering and burnt-offering of a "pair of turtle doves or two young pigeons."
At the Presentation in the Temple it was the happy privilege of St. Joseph also to redeem the Infant Jesus. This was prescribed by the Law of Moses: "And every first-born of men thou shalt redeem with a price" (Exod. xiii. 13); "for a male shall be given five sides: for a female three" (Lev. xxviii. 6). A side is valued at 2s. 7 ½ d.; thus for 13s. ld. did St. Joseph redeem the Infant Saviour. The above fact though not mentioned by any of the Evangelists, no doubt took place, in order to fulfil the Law of Moses.
0n the occasion of the Presentation in the Temple, the Blessed Virgin and St, Joseph were consoled, at the signal revelations made to Anna the Prophetess. She too, like holy Simeon, was led by the spirit into the Temple, and by divine inspiration recognised and adored the Saviour of the world. "We shall give the unctuous Gospel narrative. "And there was one Anna, prophetess, daughter of Phamiel, of the tribe Aser; she was far advanced in years, and had lived with her husband seven years from her virginity. And she was a widow until four-score and four years: who departed not from the temple, by fasting and prayers, serving night and day. Now she at the same hour coming in confessed to the Lord, and spoke of him to all that looked for the redemption of Israel" (Luke ii. 36).
After the Presentation in the Temple, and having fulfilled to the letter the Law of Moses, the Holy Family returned to Nazareth. "And after they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee to their city Nazareth. And tho child grew and waxed strong, full of wisdom: and the grace of God was in him" (Luke ii. 39).
No surprise that the Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph "wondered" at these heavenly manifestations and inspirations; month after month, year after year, each event more striking and signal than the preceding, intensified the love of St. Joseph for the Saviour of the world. We can well conceive, then, the care, reverence, and awe with which St. Joseph ministered to the wants and comforts of Jesus and Mary in their journey homeward.
A prayer of St. Alphonsus Liguori to St. Joseph.
"0 holy Patriarch, I rejoice with thee at thy exalted dignity, by which thou wert deemed worthy to act as father to Jesus, to give Him orders, and to be obeyed by Him, whom heaven and earth obey. 0 great Saint! as thou wert served by a God, I too wish to be taken into thy service. I choose thee after Mary, to be my chief advocate and protector. I promise to honour thee every day by some special act of devotion, and by placing myself daily under thy protection. By that sweet company, which Jesus and Mary gave thee in thy lifetime, protect me all the days of my life, so that I may never separate from my God by losing His grace. My dear St. Joseph pray to Jesus for me. Certainly He can never refuse thee anything as He obeyed all thy orders on earth. Tell Him to forgive me all the sins by which I have offended Him. Tell Him to detach me from all creatures, and from myself, to inflame me with His holy love, and then to do with me what He pleases. And by the assistance which Jesus and Mary gave thee at thy death, I beg of thee to protect me in a special manner at the hour of my death, so that dying, assisted by thee, in the company of Jesus and Mary, I may go to thank thee in paradise, and in thy company to praise my God for all eternity. Amen."
SECTION XIII.
The hidden Life of St. Joseph. The losing and finding of the Child Jesus in Jerusalem by "his parents" Mary and Joseph,
As our readers have most probably remarked long before now, we have kept most strictly to the Gospel narrative in sketching the Life of our great Saint. After the return from Egypt, few are the facts recorded in the sacred text about our holy Patriarch. The Gospel of St. Luke says of our Lord: "And his parents went every year to Jerusalem at the solemn day of the pasch. And when he was twelve years old, they were going up into Jerusalem according to the custom of the feast. And having fulfilled the days when they returned, the child Jesus remained in Jerusalem and his parents knew it not. And thinking he was in the company, they came a day's journey, and sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. And not finding him they returned into Jerusalem, seeking him. And it came to pass that after three days they found Him in the temple sitting in the midst of the doctors, hearing them and asking them questions. And all that heard him were astonished at his wisdom and his answers. And seeing him they wondered. And his mother said to him: Son, why hast thou done so to us? Behold thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. And He said to them: How is it that thou sought me? Did you not know that I must he about my father's business. And they understood not the word that he spoke unto them. And he went down with them and came to Nazareth: and was subject to them. And his mother kept all these words in her heart" (Luke, ii. 41-51).
The above is the last word in the Gospel narrative on the life of our great Saint. The hidden life of the Holy Family—Jesus, Mary and Joseph,—is a subject of deep reflection and useful meditation for the devout soul. The pious soul can meditate for ever on the wonders of the Hidden Life of our Blessed Lord, Jesus Christ. At the Incarnation, Mary alone paid homageto the WORD MADE FLESH. St. Joseph, St. Elizabeth, and the unborn Baptist next recognised and adored " the desired of the eternal hills." "The heavenly army" announced the "good tidings of great joy" to the shepherds, who worshipped "the infant lying in the manger." The Wise Men laid their gifts of "gold, frankincense, and myrrh" at the feet of the Divine Babe. At the Presentation in the Temple, holy Simeon and Anna, the prophetess, by divine inspiration, recognised and adored the Saviour of the world; and for eighteen years, that is, from His twelfth to His thirtieth year, not even one word is mentioned in the Gospel on the Life of our Divine Redeemer. Well might the prophet say: "Verily, thou art a hidden God" (Isai, xlv. 15). The Evangelist writes: "He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not" (John i. 10). The Blessed Virgin, by her secret, hidden and exalted virtues, imitated Jesus, her Divine Son and Model.
With such shining lights before his eyes, with such models as Jesus and Mary ever in his presence, no wonder that the Life of St. Joseph was "hidden with Christ in God" (Col. iii. 3); no wonder that few facts and fewer virtues of our Saint are recorded by the Evangelists; nor are we then to be surprised that, after the losing and finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple by his "parents," a single word is not said in the Gospels on the life and death of our holy Patriarch. With the examples of Jesus, Mary and Joseph before our eyes, let us love to be hidden and unknown; let us do all our acts solely and purely for the greater glory of God, to please God alone; let us shun the esteem and praise of the world; let us keep before our mind the sublime doctrine which our Divine Saviour preached and practised, viz.: "Take heed," said our Blessed Redeemer, "that you do not your justice before men to be seen by them .... when thou dost an alms-deed, sound not a trumpet before . . . let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doth .... and thy father who seeth in secret will repay thee . . . , when thou shalt pray, enter into thy chamber, and having shut the door, pray to thy Father in secret, and thy Father who seeth in secret 'will repay thee" (Matt. vi. 1-6).
0 most loving Jesus! grant us the grace to love to be hidden and unknown, and to do all our actions purely to please Thee. 0 Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph, obtain for us the grace to live and die for Jesus' sake.
Three times in the year the men of Israel were bound by the Law of God to present themselves before the Almighty, and to worship Him in the Temple. "Three times in the year all the males shall appear in the sight of the Almighty Lord, the God of Israel" (Exod. xxxiv. 23). The three times are specified in Deuteronomy. "Three times in the year shall all thy males appear before the Lord thy God, in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of the leavened bread, in the feast of the weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles" (Deut. xvi. 16).
We shall not here enter into the dispute among the learned whether St. Joseph went to worship in the Temple at the three appointed times according to the Law of Moses, or only once in the year. The Gospel of St. Luke, as we have seen, mentions only one visit. Children who had not attained the age of twelve years were not bound by this Law; hence, arises another controversy among commentators, whether the Child Jesus, before He attained the age of twelve, accompanied his parents to adore in the Temple. As males only came under the Law, theologians are divided in opinion whether the Blessed Virgin accompanied her holy Spouse to Jerusalem, or stayed at home at Nazareth with the Child Jesus.
What appears most reasonable, and in accordance with the habits of the Holy Family to "fulfil all justice" is, that St. Joseph observed the Law of Moses to the letter, and that the Blessed Virgin, through piety and devotion, as well as to give holy example to the Jewish women, accompanied St. Joseph, and that at each visit they took with them the Child Jesus; for we could not think for a moment that they would leave behind them at Nazareth, to another's care, a treasure they loved a thousand times dearer than their lives. Be all this as it may, as the Gospel is silent, we are only certain that when our Divine Lord had attained the age of twelve years, the Holy Family, Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, offered supreme homage to the Lord God of Israel at the Temple in Jerusalem. The distance from Nazareth to Jerusalem is About a hundred miles. Here again the world envies St. Joseph, and pronounces him thrice happy in being appointed and privileged by heaven to minister to the wants and comforts of Jesus and Mary, during a long journey of at least five days.
"When the solemn feast and devotions of the Pasch were over, Mary and Joseph left Jerusalem for their home at Nazareth, believing at the same time that the Child Jesus, in whose wisdom and prudence they had full confidence, was in the company of his relatives and townsmen. 0n the evening of the first day's journey the parents thought it time to look after the comforts of their Divine Son, and hence sought Him among their relatives and acquaintances; but to their unutterable grief could not find Him. In bitter anguish and sorrow they sought the object of their love among the pilgrims from Nazareth, and not finding Him, they retraced their steps to Jerusalem. For the first time n her life Mary felt the point of that sword of sorrow, which Simeon long before had prophesied, would pierce her soul. Inn after inn, house after house at Jerusalem was searched for the missing one; the hearts of Mary and Joseph were rent with the most bitter anguish, sorrow, and anxiety. Though the absence of Jesus made each moment seem an age, yet it was God's divine will, in order that Mary might taste the first drops of the hitter chalice, which she was to drink to the last drop at the foot of the Cross on Mount Calvary, that only after three days of sorrow and search, did Mary and Joseph find the object of their love in the Temple "in the midst of the doctors." The first loving look of Jesus inundated, so to speak, the hearts and souls of Mary and Joseph with supreme joy and delight. They have found their Son, their God, their Lord, their Love, and their All.
The Child Jesus, having done His "Father's business," returned to Mary and Joseph, and "went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them."
May we never lose Jesus by mortal sin; and if that greatest of all misfortunes, in an evil hour befalls us, which God in His mercy forbid, may we at once seek Jesus "sorrowing; "may we at once find Him, and recover the love and friendship of God our Saviour. Mary and Joseph, pray for us.