Solemnity of Saint Joseph, husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary
March 19, 2024

Today’s Readings:

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/031924.cfm

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The LORD spoke to Nathan and said:
“Go, tell my servant David,
‘When your time comes and you rest with your ancestors,
I will raise up your heir after you, sprung from your loins,
and I will make his kingdom firm.
It is he who shall build a house for my name.
And I will make his royal throne firm forever.
I will be a father to him,
and he shall be a son to me.
Your house and your kingdom shall endure forever before me;
your throne shall stand firm forever.’”

2 Samuel 7: 2-5;12-14;16

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Today’s genealogies establish Jesus as the Messianic Heir promised to the House of David. Joseph is the link in that promise.

We have so little factual knowledge of Joseph, yet so much prayerful devotion to him. Gospel tidbits from Matthew and Luke help us imagine a holy and tender man who loved Christ into his divinely missioned adulthood. We imagine Joseph’s simple and faithful life as the carpenter-provider for the Holy Family, and his peaceful death in the embrace of Mary and Jesus.

Today, in God’s Lavish Mercy:

Wherever we are in our own lives, Joseph’s life can bring us inspiration and strength. Asking his guidance, we pray today for:

• those making major life decisions
• engaged couples learning to love and support one another
• parents as they work to raise their children well
• refugee parents protecting their families
• workers struggling daily to provide for their families
• the men in our lives who have nurtured, loved, and taught us
• religious women and men in communities devoted to St. Joseph
• those who are dying that they may have comfort and peace

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Poetry: Prayer to St. Joseph – Cameron Belle

St. Joseph, patron saint of the unexpected,
How freely you stepped into the unknown
With your unwavering yes.

St. Joseph, dreamer of dreams,
How attuned your heart was, waking or sleeping,
To the promptings of angels.

St. Joseph, nurturing father,
How openly you accepted your unconventional family,
Lighting the way for us, too, to embrace all.

St. Joseph, there is still so much we don’t know about you,
But maybe that is your gift to us,
That we may see in the father of Jesus a mystery
That sanctifies the hidden and untold in our own lives.
May we, too, live our days in the holy shadow of your son.

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Music: Joseph’s Song – Michael Card