St Joseph: patron of families, workers and a happy death

What we know of St Joseph comes from the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. He was of the house of David, a carpenter or craftsman of Nazareth, betrothed to Mary. When he learned she was with child, he resolved to divorce her quietly, until an angel told him in a dream to take her as his wife. Four times in Matthew’s Gospel he is guided by a dream, and each time he gets up and does what he is told, without a word.

He took Mary and the Child to Bethlehem, to Egypt and home to Nazareth; he searched with Mary for the twelve-year-old Jesus in the Temple; and he taught Jesus his trade, so that people later asked, “Is this not the carpenter’s son?” He is not mentioned during Christ’s public life, and tradition holds that he died before it began, in the arms of Jesus and Mary — which is why he is patron of a happy death.

Pope Francis marked the 150th anniversary of Joseph’s proclamation as patron of the Church with the apostolic letter Patris Corde — “With a Father’s Heart” — on 8 December 2020, and declared a Year of St Joseph that ran until 8 December 2021. In it he describes Joseph as a beloved, tender, obedient, accepting, creatively courageous and working father, “a father in the shadows”. The Litany of St Joseph was updated in 2021 with seven new invocations.

In Ireland, St Joseph has a special place because he stood beside Our Lady at Knock, his head inclined towards her. It was on his feast in 2021 that Pope Francis raised Knock to the status of an international shrine; see Our Lady of Knock.

Traditionally, many Catholic homes keep St Joseph near the front door or in the kitchen, the place where the work of the house is done. A statue of St Joseph with the Child Jesus suits a family home, a new father, a couple expecting a baby, or a house blessing. St Joseph the Worker, with his tools, suits a workshop, an office, a builder’s yard or a business.

In a church, Joseph traditionally stands on one side of the sanctuary with Our Lady on the other, and the two statues should be chosen to match in size and style; see church statues. Schools and religious communities named for him often have him in the front hall. And because he is patron of a happy death, a St Joseph is a fitting memorial or a gift for someone who is dying.

A short prayer said by many: “St Joseph, foster-father of Jesus, pray for us.” In difficulty, the Church’s old advice is simply Ite ad Joseph — “Go to Joseph.”