Why St. Joseph is My Homeboy

One of the many things I enjoy about being Catholic is how we honor the saints. Such amazing and inspirational stories of holy men and women- priests, nuns, popes, lay people, married couples, even children, point to the glory and power of Jesus Christ. We have a patron saint for just about anything: St. Jude, saint of hopeless causes; St. Peregrine, saint of cancer patients, St. Anne, saint for mothers; St. Clare, patron saint of television. We even have St. Gertrude of Nivelles, saint of those who fear mice.

When I was a child, I remember really admiring and loving the Virgin Mary. For me she was like a very holy version of a Disney princess. (I know that sounds bad, but I mean it in a very endearing way!) I used to put blankets on my head like Our Lady's veil and my baby dolls were Jesus and I "played" Nativity scene.

I will always have a great devotion to Mary. However as I became a boy-crazed teenager, I grew a new-found devotion for Mary's husband, St. Joseph. I never really knew why I went to light candles below the St. Joseph statue rather than under Mary's statue. I didn't know why I felt drawn to his statue. He looked so simple and humble, yet strong. I couldn't quite put my finger on it.

Mom and I started going back to Mass regularly around the time I received the Sacrament of Confirmation. Around that time I started singing in the Christmas Choir at my small parish of about 50 families. There was one song called "Joseph's Song" that had a gorgeous melody and beautiful lyrics:

I felt alone, I felt betrayed.

How could Mary feel such joy when I felt so afraid?

Though I wanted to believe her when she said an angel came,

I feared that she would only bring me shame.

I wish that I could understand why this has come to be.

The life I built with rugged hands is just a broken dream.

The pain within my heart is more than any I have known.

How could I ever hold this child and love Him as my own?

And then last night the angel came.

While I dreamed he spoke to me and called me by my name.

He consoled my fear with comfort, and faith became renewed.

I knew that Mary's words to me were true.

Although I do not understand why this has come to be.

A father who has rugged hands will find the strength he needs

to build a place within his heart where tenderness is shown.

These rugged hands can hold God's child yet love Him as my own.

This song struck a cord with me. Here was Joseph, a good and holy man, and his betrothed (essentially his wife) was pregnant with a child who was not his. How heartbroken he must have been. He had a very difficult choice to make- send the woman he loved to death for breaking the Law, or divorce her quietly. Here was God's plan laid before him, but he felt betrayed and confused.

He could have sent Mary to her death, wiped his hands clean and moved on. He could have abandoned Mary to raise her child all by herself. He could have forgotten all about her.

But he didn't. He stayed by her side. He continued to love her. And by the grace of God he was able to follow God's will (even if it made NO sense- the Messiah the Israelite nation was yearning for coming into this world as a new born babe in a manger? Who'd a thunk it?) Joseph didn't abandon Mary in her time of need, and that's what made me realize why I admired St. Joseph so much.

I didn't meet my father until I was eleven years old. To make a very long story short (perhaps another post on another day) my father abandoned my mom when I was born. He was faced with a difficult situation. They weren't married, he already had a thirteen year old daughter, and to put it bluntly, he was selfish. He could have been brave and stuck around like St. Joseph, but he didn't. He left my mother in a time of great need.

At the time I realized why I liked St. Joseph, I was in high school. You know that time, when your boyfriend breaks up with you the world is going to end? And when you see him flirting with another girl by the pop machines you can feel your heart breaking into a jillion pieces and sinking to your stomach? I had a couple of serious relationships in high school- some great, some not so great. And of course I had a myriad of crushes that never panned out. At this time when I felt like all the "loves of my life" were leaving me I really looked to St. Joseph for comfort. I knew in my heart I would find a good man someday.

It was St. Joseph's model of manhood that made me really look up to my brother and uncles who were huge father figures in my life. His example made me really appreciate the good men in my life.

But the story doesn't stop there!

While I was in my "dark years" trying to figure out where to go to college, my mom prayed a St. Joseph novena. Of course it didn't "work" then since I decided to to go Northwest instead of Benedictine. But when I moved to Atchison and expressed a desire to apply to Benedictine she prayed another St. Joseph novena and a week or so later I was a BC student! (A lesson that prayers work, just not always in our time.)

When my husband and I were in our best friend phase we went to Sonic after class. While we were waiting for our food he asked me to hold on to his wallet. (OK...so I snatched it to be nosey!) I opened it up and right there tucked inside the plastic covering his driver's licence was a St. Joseph medal. "Cool! You like St. Joseph?" I asked. "Oh yeah, my whole family has a great devotion to St. Joseph. My grandma always told my mom to pray to St. Joe to find a good husband." Little did I know that St. Joseph had already led me to my future husband- right there beside me in that car eating tater tots!

There are MANY reasons I love St. Joseph. Here is a YouTube video that I encourage you to look at. It's kind of long, but very interesting. Plus this video features Fr. James Martin S.J., the chaplain to the show Colbert Report.

St. Joseph pray for us!