POPE FRANCIS ANNOUNCED A “YEAR OF ST. JOSEPH” BEGINNING LAST TUESDAY, DECEMBER 8TH, 2020, AND CONCLUDING ON THE SAME DATE NEXT YEAR.
The Holy Father goes on to say - “I have great love for St. Joseph, because he is a man of silence and strength. In the Gospels, St. Joseph appears as a strong and courageous man, a working man, yet in his heart we see great tenderness, which is not the virtue of the weak but rather a sign of strength of spirit and a capacity for concern, for compassion, for genuine openness to others, for love,” he said.
He reflected on the best qualities of St. Joseph, describing him as beloved, tender and loving, obedient, accepting, and creatively-courageous, “a father in the shadows”. “For Jesus, Joseph was the earthly shadow of His Heavenly Father: he watched over him and protected him” the Pope wrote. “Our world today needs fathers, not tyrants, and rejects those who confuse authority with authoritarianism, service with servility, discussion with oppression, charity with a welfare mentality, power with destruction.”
Hail, Guardian of the Redeemer, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary. To you God entrusted His only Son; in you Mary placed her trust; with you Christ, the Word, became flesh, and lived among us under your fatherly care. Pray for us to Him for whom you were Guardian, that we may be defended from all that might harm. Pope Francis, adapted by PHNC.
“Have you no pride?”,
said the voice in his head,
“make her pay the price.
She’s shown you up as a silly old fool,
it doesn’t pay to be nice.”
The Mary he knew was not like that,
he couldn’t understand,
he wouldn’t purge her with the law
nor put her in the judge’s hands.
John Morgan
Lord Jesus Christ,
we acknowledge your rule
over every realm of life:
We journey with you in prayer…...
Lord Jesus Christ, we acknowledge your rule over every realm of life:
We journey with you in prayer…...
Son of Mary: consecrate our homes.
Son of David: cleanse our politics.
Son of God: grant us eternal life.
Jesus the Carpenter:
hallow our daily work.
Jesus the Saviour:
save us from ourselves.
Jesus the Life-giver: renew your Church.
Jesus the Crucified: reveal your love and power to all who suffer.
Jesus the King: raise us to live and reign with you for ever.
Jesus the Word of God: perfect your creation
and bring the world to the knowledge of your love.
Jesus – be our companion and our guide. Amen.
