Michael O'Sullivan / unsplash
CV NEWS FEED // One of Pope Francis’ most popular decisions among the faithful was his designation of 2020 as the Year of St. Joseph, which honored the 150th anniversary of Pope Pius IX’s declaration of St. Joseph as Patron of the Universal Church.
“The greatness of Saint Joseph is that he was the spouse of Mary and the father of Jesus,” the Holy Father wrote in his 2020 Apostolic Letter. “In this way, he placed himself, in the words of Saint John Chrysostom, ‘at the service of the entire plan of salvation.’”
According to Vatican News, Pope Francis wrote the 2020 Apostolic Letter Patris corde, “With a Father’s Heart,” amid the COVID-19 pandemic, emphasizing the parallel between the patience and hope ordinary people displayed in their trials and the great humility of St. Joseph.
The Holy Father described the Christian community’s veneration of St. Joseph as a father in a variety of forms, including as a beloved father, a tender and loving father, an obedient father, and an accepting father.
Quoting St. Pope John Paul II, Pope Francis wrote, “Saint Joseph was called by God to serve the person and mission of Jesus directly through the exercise of his fatherhood.”
In this way, the Pope continued with the quote, “He cooperated in the fullness of time in the great mystery of salvation and is truly a minister of salvation.”
The Holy Father urged individuals to recall the creative courage of St. Joseph in times of difficulty, reminding them of his steadfast faith and devotion to protect his holy family.
“At the end of every account in which Joseph plays a role,” Pope Francis wrote, “the Gospel tells us that he gets up, takes the child and his mother, and does what God commanded him.”
Describing St. Joseph as a working father, Pope Francis emphasized the need to recognize the value of honorable work.
Calling St. Joseph the “exemplary patron,” of dignified work, the apostolic letter read, “Saint Joseph was a carpenter who earned an honest living to provide for his family. From him, Jesus learned the value, the dignity and the joy of what it means to eat bread that is the fruit of one’s own labour.”
Pope Francis exhorted fathers to draw their inspiration from St. Joseph, emphasizing his example of self-gift.
“When he [a father] becomes like Joseph,” the Holy Father wrote, “who always knew that his child was not his own but had merely been entrusted to his care. In the end, this is what Jesus would have us understand when he says: ‘Call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven.’”
