Saint Joseph: the Saint We Need Now
How can we grow closer to Saint Joseph this month? And why is he so important to the Church today? This is the focus of this month’s Full of Grace Youth Journal.
Devotion to Saint Joseph
Devotion to Saint Joseph didn’t spread to the universal Church until fairly recently. While there were many saints with a special devotion to him, it wasn’t until the fifteenth century that Saint Joseph’s feast day was introduced to the Church calendar. Pope Pius IX declared Saint Joseph Patron of the Universal Church in 1870. Since then, devotion to Saint Joseph has grown dramatically and many popes have praised and promoted this devotion.
According to Saint Josemaria Escriva in Christ is Passing By,
“In human life, Joseph was Jesus’ master in their daily contact, full of refined affection, glad to deny himself to take better care of Jesus. Isn’t that reason enough for us to consider this just man, this holy patriarch, in whom the faith of the old covenant bears fruit, as a master of the interior life? Interior life is nothing but continual and direct conversation with Christ, so as to become one with him. And Joseph can tell us many things about Jesus. Therefore, never neglect devotion to him—Ite ad Ioseph: ‘Go to Joseph’—as Christian tradition puts it in the words of the old testament (Gen 41:55).”
Patronage
Of what is Saint Joseph the patron? He is the patron of the Universal Church, the dying, families, fathers, expectant mothers (pregnant women), travelers, immigrants, house sellers and buyers, craftsmen, engineers, and working people in general.
When does the Church celebrate Saint Joseph in the liturgy? March 19 is the Solemnity of Saint Joseph. May 1 is the Memorial of Saint Joseph the Worker.
Saint Joseph and You
How can you incorporate devotion to Saint Joseph into your own life? The Church sets aside each day of the week for a special devotion. Wednesdays—the day the week turns on—are set aside for special devotion to Saint Joseph. One way to build devotion to Saint Joseph would be to choose a special way to remember Saint Joseph each Wednesday.
The Full of Grace Youth Journal – March 2025
Full of Grace
Full of Grace is a monthly journal for those enrolled in The Youth Guild of Saint José Sánchez del Río. Each journal includes a feature on a young saint or blessed, a daily consecration to Our Lady of Fatima, prayer cards and memory verses, Q&A, and art submitted by members of the guild!
Any youth is welcome to enroll. At their enrollment, youths will receive four special benefits:
- On the Feast Day of Saint José Sánchez del Río, February 10, the Shrine will host a special Mass for the youth guild, at the conclusion of which the celebrant will bless guild members with a first-class relic of Saint José Sánchez del Río.
2. The youths enrolled in the Guild are remembered in the Prayers of the Faithful daily during Holy Mass.
3. As members are commended to the special intercession of Saint José Sánchez del Río, each guild member receives a medal of the young saint.
4. Members receive monthly editions of Full of Grace.
