Homily on the Solemnity of St Joseph, 19 March 2026, DBPH Chapel, Talamban
Today we take a short break from Lent in order to celebrate the Solemnity of St Joseph, the chaste Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The life story of St Joseph may not be as interesting as other famous Biblical figures like Abraham, Moses, David and Elijah. Nonetheless, it cannot be denied that he had played a very crucial role in the history of humankind’s salvation. In fact Catholic devotion to him has become so strong that he is now recognized and venerated as the chaste spouse of Mary and the faithful guardian of Jesus. Aside from that in 1870, he has been declared by Pope Pius IX as the patron and protector of the Universal Church, the Mystical Body of Jesus.
The Gospels provide us with seemingly very little information about St Joseph. But those small bits and pieces have recently triggered an insatiable interest among scholars that today the study of his life and his role in salvation history has produced an entire theology of St. Joseph known as Josephology.
There are so far three Papal documents written on St Joseph. The first is the encyclical letter written by Pope Leo XIII in 1889 entitled “Quamquam Pluries,” urging the Catholics to pray to St Joseph as patron of the Universal Church.
The second was “Redemptoris Custos” written by Pope John Paul II in 1989 to mark the centenary of “Quamquam Pluries”. “Redemptoris Custos” or Guardian of the Redeemer expounds the role of St Joseph in the divine plan of redemption.
Finally on the 8th of December 2020, Pope Francis released the apostolic letter entitled “Patris Corde” or With the Heart of a Father declaring the year 2020-2021 as the Year of Saint Joseph. It was written in order to mark the 150th anniversary of the declaration of St Joseph as Patron of the Universal Church,
You see, there is so much more that we can discover about St Joseph other than his being the husband of Mary and the guardian of Jesus. I encourage you to start reading any of these materials that are downloadable from the internet.
May this feast we are celebrating trigger in us a strong curiosity and an eager longing to get to know St Joseph more and thus be inspired by his chaste love for Mary and his protective care and solicitude for both Mary and her son, Jesus. The more we get to know St Joseph, the more we will be devoted to him to the point of wanting to imitate his virtues and his holy life.
Today, more and more people are turning to St Joseph to intercede for their many needs and concerns. He is invoked as the patron saint of fathers, of families and of virgins. He is the patron saint of workers, especially carpenters, of expecting mothers and of unborn children. He is recognized also as the patron saint of attorneys, of barristers, of emigrants, of travelers and of house hunters. He is also known today as the terror of demons. And finally we Salesians call on him as the patron of a happy and holy death.
May St. Joseph inspire us, protect us. pray for us and lead us closer to Jesus, whom he guarded and protected as our Lord and Redeemer. GiGsss!