St. Joseph Novena Study – Day 5: Patron Of Church, Patriarch

St. Joseph Oratory Fall (Photo by GiovanniPatone on Wikimedia Commons)

Welcome to Day 5 of the St. Joseph Novena Study! Today we reflect on St. Joseph as Patron of the Church.

St. Joseph Patron of the Church

It makes sense that Joseph, who is Head of the Holy Family including the child Jesus who is Head of the Church, would have some authority that is respected in the Church. Yet, until recently, I haven’t heard too much about St. Joseph outside of Christmas season.

In reality, the Church has always honored this humble Saint, but the recent the work of Fr. Don Calloway with the Consecration to St. Joseph, and with the Year of St. Joseph that we had in 2021, more of us are finally getting on board.

Day 5 St. Joseph List

This is a list of titles and roles of St. Joseph pulled out of the EWTN St. Joseph Novena: DAY 5 PATRON OF THE CHURCH.

Patron of the Church
Head of The Holy Family
Starting point of the Church
Father
Protector
Guide
Support
Means of bringing the Redeemer
Supported
Nourished
Protected
Sheltered
Preserved
Patriarch
Descendant of David
Forbear of Christ
Husband
Foster-father
Patriarch of patriarchs
Most venerable, exalted, and amiable of all the patriarchs
Chosen

St. Joseph, an Entrusted Patriarch

I like the word “patriarch”. The culture today seems to think it can be oppressive, but us Christians should have no problems with the simple idea of honoring our fathers or our mothers.

Patriarch of the Church

Patriarch, in a specifically Christian sense, is a term used for head of the church, like the Pope. In a way similar to how Peter was vicar and successor to Christ as head of church on Earth, Joseph was the pre-vicar and pre head of the church on Earth by being head over Christ in the Holy family.

I have never looked at Joseph this way, but it is as if he was the pre-Pope of the Church. In this role, he was entrusted with the raising of Jesus, head of the Church.

Our Role in the Church

We may not be entrusted with the Universal Church, but we can still assist in supporting, nourishing, protecting, and preserving it.

For priests, this would be your parish. But even for the laity, there is some aspect of the Church that we are still entrusted with. It may not be the latest news from Rome that we are called to care about, but how do we represent the Church to each person that we encounter throughout our day? Are we supporting and nourishing a good image? Are we protecting the Church?

A Father’s Heart

As I mentioned, 2021 was the Year of St. Joseph. This marked 150 years since Pope Blessed Pius IX decreed that St. Joseph is Patron of the Universal Church.

In his apostolic letter, Patris Corde or, “A Father’s Heart”, to mark the occasion Pope Francis laid out his own lists for St. Joseph.

He begins with a helpful list of what we know from Scripture. Joseph was:

a lowly carpenter (cf. Mt 13:55)
betrothed to Mary (cf. Mt 1:18; Lk 1:27)
a “just man” (Mt 1:19)
ever ready to carry out God’s will as revealed to him in the Law (cf. Lk 2:22.27.39) and through four dreams (cf. Mt 1:20; 2:13.19.22).
he beheld the birth of the Messiah in a stable, since “there was no place for them” elsewhere (cf. Lk 2:7).
He witnessed the adoration of the shepherds (cf. Lk 2:8-20)
and the Magi (cf. Mt 2:1-12)

The Pope goes on further to list and eborate on these traits of Joseph as a father.

1. A beloved father

2. A tender and loving father

3. An obedient father

4. An accepting father

5. A creatively courageous father

6. A working father

7. A father in the shadows

Finally, I’ll end with this excerpt from the text:

“Fathers are not born, but made. A man does not become a father simply by bringing a child into the world, but by taking up the responsibility to care for that child. Whenever a man accepts responsibility for the life of another, in some way he becomes a father to that person.”
Pope Francis in Patris Corde