Feast day: March 19
St. Joseph is the husband of Mary and the father of Jesus. He has many titles, such as “Head of the Holy Family,” “Patron of the Poor” and “Joseph, most strong.”
God often spoke to Joseph through dreams. In the first dream, he told him to take Mary into his home and name her baby “Jesus” (Matthew 1).
In another dream, he told Joseph to take Jesus and Mary to Egypt to protect Jesus from Herod, the king, who wanted to kill Jesus.
St. Joseph loved Mary and Jesus. One of the ways he loved them was by protecting them when they were in danger.
In the third dream, Joseph was told to return to Israel with Mary and Jesus because Herod had died. Joseph was also warned in a dream of the son of Herod, the new ruler, so he took them to a different part of the nation.
St. Joseph is the patron saint of the Catholic Church, workers, families, fathers and expectant mothers — just to name a few! The month of March is dedicated to St. Joseph.
You can celebrate the feast of St. Joseph by praying for your father or a father-figure in your life — like a step-father, grandfather or uncle. You can even make a card for one of them thanking them for loving and protecting you!
Most churches have a statue of St. Joseph. Before or after Mass, or sometime during the week, visit the statue with a parent and say a prayer for your family.
You can ask St. Joseph to be a father to you with this prayer written by Pope Francis:
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 became man.
Blessed Joseph, to us too,
show yourself a father
and guide us in the path of life.
Obtain for us grace, mercy and courage,
and defend us from every evil. Amen.
Youth who are high school age and younger are invited to submit original visual art, such as a drawing or painting, to be featured in the “Saints for Kids” section of Youth Focus.
For the next Saints for Kids, the subject of the artwork is St. Louis de Montfort. A photo of the artwork can be submitted via email to ocastlen@archlou.org or the original can be mailed to the attention of The Record at the Maloney Center, 1200 S. Shelby St., Louisville, Ky., 40203, with a stamped return envelope.
The deadline to submit is April 10. Call reporter Olivia Castlen at 471-2131 with any questions.
