"Blessed are they who suffer persecution for justice' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5:10)"Blessed are they who suffer persecution for justice' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5:10)
Fidelity to Grace
Not every "cause of right" constitutes a major issue of principles, nor does every persecution consist in physical assault. In the ordinary course of everyday living, God-fearing men and women often endure bitter suffering occasioned by the indifference or positive disdain on the part of their unsympathetic or belittling associates.
Often jealousy is the cause of this form of persecution. Saint Joseph was probably no stranger to such suffering, as can be inferred from an episode Saint Matthew describes which occurred during Christ's public ministry on the occasion of His second visit to Nazareth, where He had grown up. Entering the synagogue there, He taught His fellow townsmen with such authority that "they were astonished, and said, 'How did this man come by this wisdom and these miracles? Is not this the carpenter's son? Is not His mother called Mary, and His brethren James and Joseph and Simon and Jude? And His sisters, are they not all with us ?' And they took offense at Him." (Matthew 13:54-56,57)
"Their teeth are spears and arrows, their tongue is a sharp sword." (Psalm 56:5) The sting of these disparaging remarks and the unkind reflection they cast upon those who were so dear to Him drew a severe rebuke from the gentle Christ, as Saint Luke recounts (cf. Luke 4:23-27). The words of Christ were wisdom and power; yet they were received with incredulity because they were the words of the son of Joseph, the carpenter of that lowly village of Nazareth - the town of which even the gentlemanly Nathanael laughingly remarked, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" (John 1:46). The implication is clear: Joseph was, in the eyes of the Nazarenes, a craftsman, nothing more. True, he was "of the house and family of David" (Luke 2:4), but he had not the prestige of the Scribes or Pharisees. Fortunately, the evangelist has recorded for us the observation which Christ made on this occasion, expressing His perfect understanding of human psychology: "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, and in his own house" (Matthew 13:57). Neither Nazareth nor any place on this earth was Christ's true country, nor Saint Joseph's either, any more than it is ours. "Our citizenship is in heaven" (Philippians 3:20). In all afflictions which our fellow men cause us, we must remember: "Blessed are they who suffer persecution for justice' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
Prayer
Dear Saint Joseph, teach me, in all the misunderstandings which befall me in this life, to study the life of Christ, that I may learn from His example and be comforted and strengthened by His words. When the disappointments of this life cast dark shadows on my path, lift my thoughts to the kingdom of heaven, my true home, where God wills me to live forever with Him in love and peace.
Concluding Prayer
Almighty Father, from whom all graces come: I praise and bless and thank Thee for Saint Joseph's fidelity to grace. Grant that, through his loving intercession, I, too, may be faithful to grace. O my powerful patron Saint Joseph, obtain for me the favor I now ask.
Fidelity to the Interior Life
Among the stories recounted in the Old Testament, none holds more fascination than the story of Joseph, the youngest son of Jacob, and his amazing career among the Egyptians. Surely Saint Joseph must have reflected frequently on this account of one of the same lineage as himself. Particularly during his own sojourn in Egypt he must have pondered the similarity of circumstances which had brought the earlier Joseph and himself into this pagan land. "Blessed are they who suffer persecution for justice' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." Jealousy, treachery, deceit - such was the pattern Joseph's brothers had followed in seeking to rid themselves of their father's favorite son. It was this same pattern of jealousy, treachery, and deceit that Herod had followed in his dastardly efforts to dispose of the Eternal Father's only Son - of whom the Father was to declare: "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:17)
Egypt, the land of strangers, the scene of discouraging toil and disappointing rebuffs, nurtured the growth of Saint Joseph's interior life. Here, during the Christ Child's earliest days, His foster father came to realize the deep significance of the holy name of Jesus, which he had himself given the Child at His circumcision. The former Joseph had been the victim of hatred, false witness, persecution, but in the end became the savior of his people. In him Saint Joseph recognized a type of the Messias. In Christ, his foster Son, he knew the Messias had come. "Thou shalt call His name Jesus; for He shall save His people from their sins," the angel had instructed Saint Joseph (Matthew 1:21). Unlike the apostles, Saint Joseph had no false notions about the role the Messias was to play. He realized that as regards the sin of Adam, "without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness" (Hebrews 9:22). With faith, and hope, and love, Saint Joseph accepted the role of suffering which was in store for his beloved foster Son.
Prayer
Dear Saint Joseph, with what great reverence you must have uttered the holy name of Jesus! Help me to increase my own devotion to this holy name. May I spread love and reverence for it among others, and by my prayers and sacrifices may I offer reparation for the sins of blasphemy and the insults committed against this holy name. May my favorite aspiration be: "O Jesus, be to me Jesus and save me!"
Concluding Prayer
Almighty Father, from whom all graces come: I praise and bless and thank Thee for Saint Joseph's fidelity to the interior life. Grant that, through his loving intercession, I, too, may be faithful to the interior life. O my powerful patron Saint Joseph, obtain for me the favor I now ask.
Devotion to Our Lady
"The occasion does not make the man, it shows you what he is." How well this truth is exemplified by Saint Joseph during the flight into Egypt! The tension and weariness of that difficult journey put his virtues to a severe test. Here, perhaps better than in any other episode which the Gospels recount concerning him, a study of his noble conduct is rewarding.
As head of the Holy Family, Saint Joseph is the exemplar of the perfect father and the perfect husband. As father, he had to provide for and protect his Infant Son. But the Divine Child was still in that helpless stage of infancy in which He depended entirely on His Mother for food, and found all the security and comfort He needed as He nestled in the gentle curve of her arm. Mary, on the flight into Egypt, is essentially the Madonna. She and her Divine Babe are inseparable.
Saint Joseph, then, found himself doing everything Ad Jesum per Mariam - for Jesus through Mary. Like rich jewels in the precious crown which the liturgy of his feast bestows upon him ("Thou hast set on his head a crown of precious stones" - cf. Psalm 20:4), the virtues of Saint Joseph gleam resplendently throughout this mystery of the flight into Egypt. In a prominent place were Joseph's faith in the divine maternity of Mary and in the divinity of his foster Son, as well as perfect trust in Divine Providence in the face of perplexing vicissitudes; there was, too, his cheerful and unquestioning acceptance of God's will and his prompt obedience, combined with his forgetfulness of self and utter devotion to duty. Here was the first sodalist of Mary, for sodalis means a devoted companion. Here was the first "slave of love," demonstrating true devotion to Mary along the lines which Saint Louis de Montfort would later preach to the world. In Saint Joseph we can see, too, the first lay apostle, setting a pattern which husbands and fathers, and lovers of Christ and His Blessed Mother, should follow in their pursuit of sanctity.
Prayer
Dear Saint Joseph, be my model and guide in my devotion to Our Lady. Teach me to do all "For Jesus through Mary." May my words and actions reflect those virtues which are so dear to Mary and her Divine Son, and may my devotion to you, dear Saint, draw me closer to the Immaculate Heart of your beloved spouse.
Concluding Prayer
Almighty Father, from whom all graces come: I praise and bless and thank Thee for Saint Joseph's devotion to Our Lady. Grant that, through his loving intercession, I, too, may be truly devoted to Our Lady. O my powerful patron Saint Joseph, obtain for me the favor I now ask.
Devotion to the Divine Child
Only one evangelist records the horrifying story of the slaughter of the Holy Innocents. This is Saint Matthew, whose Gospel, tradition says, depends for its account of events connected with Christ's Infancy upon details gleaned from Saint Joseph. What sorrow must have filled the tender heart of this great saint when he learned of the unspeakable crime which the jealous Herod had committed against the innocent babes in his kingdom! Safe in Egypt, Mary and Joseph shuddered as they realized what Herod had attempted. They grieved for the heartbroken Jewish mothers whose babies had been roughly snatched from their arms and cruelly murdered. What a price those infants paid for their resemblance in age to the innocent Lamb of God! Yet what a glorious reward they immediately received. In the Divine Office for their feast, they are celebrated as those who "follow the Lamb wherever He goes . . . ; purchased from among men, first-fruits unto God and unto the Lamb" (Apocalypse 14:4). How perfectly is the promise of Christ fulfilled in their case as they stand without spot or stain before the throne of God: "Blessed are they who suffer persecution for justice' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
Today the massacre of the innocent is being repeated on a scale that defies calculation. Martyrs by the thousands shed their blood in the cause of right. Thousands more endure a living death, stripped of their dignity, reduced to a subhuman existence. In their pitiful plight, their sole comfort and source of strength must be their trust in God and in the unfailing promises of His Divine Son. Surely the present-day victims of persecution as well as their brothers in the Mystical Body should beg Saint Joseph to obtain for them the gift of understanding, that they may see deep into this mystery of suffering and through it attain the kingdom of heaven.
Prayer
Dear Saint Joseph, enlighten me that I may have a proper attitude toward pain. Teach me not to dread it but to look upon it as my opportunity to share in the redemptive act of Christ's Passion. In my contacts with those who are carrying the cross of physical suffering, may my words bring them comfort and hope and the courage to unite themselves with Christ's sufferings.
Concluding Prayer
Almighty Father, from whom all graces come: I praise and bless and thank Thee for Saint Joseph's devotion to the Divine Child. Grant that, through his loving intercession, I, too, may be truly devoted to Jesus. O my powerful patron Saint Joseph, obtain for me the favor I now ask.
- taken from Reflecting on Saint Joseph: A Nine-Day Devotion, by Sister Emily Joseph Daly, C.S.J.