Ad te beate Joseph, in tribulatione nostra confugimus, atque, implorato Sponsae tuae sanctissimae auxilio, patrocinium quoque tuum fidenter exposcimus. (To thee, O blessed Joseph, do we come in our tribulation, and having implored the help of thy most holy Spouse, we confidently invoke thy patronage also. )

SAINT JOSEPH

Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Confessor

Patron of the Universal Church

March 19

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.

 

It is a salutary practice and very praiseworthy, already established in some countries, to consecrate the month of March to the honour of the holy Patriarch by daily exercises of piety. Where this custom cannot be easily established, it is as least desirable, that before the feast-day, in the principal church of each parish, a triduo of prayer be celebrated. In those lands where the 19th of March – the Feast of St. Joseph – is not a Festival of Obligation, We exhort the faithful to sanctify it as far as possible by private pious practices, in honour of their heavenly patron, as though it were a day of Obligation. ~Pope Leo XIII

Viva la Tavola di San Giuseppe!

Long live the table of St. Joseph!

The importance of this day in Catholic tradition extends throughout the world, but one related custom, in particular, originated on the island of Sicily: St. Joseph’s Table.

The origins of St. Joseph’s Table can be traced to the Middle Ages. 

According to one tradition, during a famine brought on by a severe drought, starving villagers — many of them farmers — prayed to St. Joseph, asking for his intercession. St. Joseph helped them to survive by eating the fava bean. It was the only crop that would grow in such harsh conditions. So bountiful the crop became that the famine ended.

To offer their thanks the people prepared a special feast, inviting the poor and less fortunate among them to share in the meal. The feast of St. Joseph’s Table has been celebrated ever since.

The St. Joseph’s table itself — also known as an “altar” — is traditionally comprised of three ascending tables, or “steps,” representing both the Holy Trinity and the ascent from earth to heaven. At the center of the last and highest table is a statue of St. Joseph or a picture of the Holy Family.

Palms and lily plants typically adorn each of the tables. Vigil candles, usually green, brown and dark yellow, accompany the flowers, representing the colors of St. Joseph. Breads are formed and baked into the shapes of various Catholic symbols, such as a St. Joseph’s staff and various carpentry tools, a chalice, cross, monstrance, dove, lamb, fish or heart. Some of these elaborate breads are not eaten as part of the meal, but later given to the poor. Bottles of wine are also placed upon the altar, as well as assorted fruits such as grapes and lemons.

The various culinary treats that form the meal are each blessed by a priest; thus the food is never to be thrown away or wasted. Because the feast of St. Joseph falls during the Lenten season, meat is not a part of the meal.

The main course is a pasta dish containing sardines, tomatoes and fresh fennel, and sprinkled with breadcrumbs to represent the sawdust of a carpenter. There are several names for this dish, but it is often called pasta con sarde, pasta con mudrica orpasta Milanese. Various soups made of lentils and vegetable dishes such as stuffed artichokes, broccoli and fennel, as well as the all-important fava bean, which is often served roasted and lightly salted, accompany the pasta.

As with all things Sicilian, the meal is followed by a tasty assortment of desserts: various cookies, zeppole and the famous St. Joseph sfinge, which is a round cream puff filled with ricotta cheese or cream and adorned with candied fruits. The food that remains is given to the poor, along with any money that guests may have contributed.

 

 

 

 

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
• St. Joseph Coloring Pages – Catholic Playground
• St. Joseph Memory Cards – Shower of Roses
• 3D Cut & Color St. Joseph Altar
• Novena to St. Joseph Printable
• A Meditation on St. Joseph – Finner Femininity
• Consecration to St. Joseph – OLRL
• Annual St. Joseph Altar– St. Joseph Altar

SERMONS:

• St Joseph, the Man Chosen By God (19- March)
• Marriage of St Joseph & The Blessed Virgin Mary~ Cardinal Burke
• The Humility & Self Effacement of St Joseph
• St Joseph, the Man Chosen By God

• Sancta Missa Propers in Latin (Score, MP3): Sancti Ioseph, sponsi B. Mariæ Virginis
• Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary:  Feast of St. Joseph – Epistle (MP3; FSSP)
• Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary:  Feast of St. Joseph – Gospel (MP3; FSSP)
• The Chant of Le Barroux: Office for 2018-03-19

PRAYERS TO ST. JOSEPH

Prayer to St. Joseph

by Pope St. Pius X.

Glorious St. Joseph, model of all who are devoted to labor, obtain for me the grace to work in the spirit of penance in expiation of my many sins; to work conscientiously by placing love of duty above my inclinations; to gratefully and joyously deem it an honor to employ and to develop by labor the gifts I have received from God, to work methodically, peacefully, and in moderation and patience, without ever shrinking from it through weariness or difficulty to work; above all, with purity of intention and unselfishness, having unceasingly before my eyes death and the account I have to render of time lost, talents unused, good not done, and vain complacency in success, so baneful to the work of God. All for Jesus, all for Mary, all to imitate thee, O patriarch St. Joseph! This shall be my motto for life and eternity.

 

Prayer to St. Joseph, Patron of the Universal Church

Most powerful patriarch St. Joseph, Patron of the Universal Church, which has always invoked thee in anxiety and trouble, from the exalted seat of thy glory cast a loving glance upon the whole Catholic world. Let thy fatherly heart be touched at the sight of the mystical spouse and the Vicar of Christ overwhelmed with sorrow and persecuted by powerful enemies.

Oh! by the bitter anguish thou didst experience upon earth, dry the tears of the venerable Pontiff, defend him, liberate him, intercede for him with the Giver of peace and charity, that, all adversity being removed, and all error dissipated, the entire Church may serve God in perfect liberty: Ut destructis adversitatibus et erroribus universis Ecclesia secura Deo serviat libertate. Amen.