St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary

 

Joseph, a member of the royal family of David, was leading the obscure life of a village carpenter when God chose him to be the spouse of the Blessed Virgin and the foster father of the Incarnate Word. Scripture tells us that Joseph was just, pure, gentle, prudent, and a lover of holy silence. Above all, this humble guardian of the Child Jesus was unfailingly obedient to the divine will.
Joseph is not mentioned after he and Mary lost the twelve-year-old Jesus in the Temple and, following three days of agonized search, found their boy discoursing divinely with the learned doctors of the Law. The great task of the foster father of Christ must have been finished before the marriage feast at Cana and the beginning of the Savior’s public ministry. Untold millions have since then invoked St. Joseph as the patron of a happy death.

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SAINT JOSEPH
Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Confessor
Patron of the Universal Church

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Our simple feast day celebration for the Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary and our earthly father, Dad.

The table is made up of three tiers, symbolizing the Most Holy Trinity. The top tier held a statue of St. Joseph.  We included our Handprint Lilies and a topiary for the greenery.  Each child added a dish to the table.  The boys coordinated the arrangement of the plates.

The celebration began when Dad came home.  We served up his favorite dish, parmesan chicken.  Conveniently, our meal was made of left overs from the baptism.  Rose made two sweet treats in honor of St. Joseph and Dad. 

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We had timely visitors for the feast of St. Joseph.  A family of swallows have made our porch their home.  Their nest was built with the previous owners and has remained since.  The swallows return every year.  We didn’t notice when they came in the previous year but we were on the lookout for them this year.  We did not have a citing until the morning after St. Joseph’s feast day.   It was a glorious morning surprise.

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Resources:

• Printable St. Joseph Holy Card – Catholic Tradition
• St. Joseph Holy Card Collection – Holy Card Heaven
• Handprint Lily Craft – JOYfilledfamily
• St. Joseph Coloring Page – St. John the Baptist
• Consecration to St. Joseph – OLRL
• Litany of St. Joseph in MP3 – EWTN
• AudioSancto Sermon, The Humility and Self Effacement of Saint Joseph
• 4th Annual St. Joseph Altar Blog Fest – St. Joseph Altar

Virtual St. Joseph Altar BLOG: 4th Annual St. Joseph Altar Blog Fest