With a Father’s Heart: Pope announces The Year of Saint Joseph
“A beloved father, a tender and loving father, an obedient father, an accepting father, a creatively courageous father, a working father, a father in the shadows"- these words are used by the Pope Francis to describe Saint Joseph. He does so in the Apostolic Letter "Patris Corde" - "With a Father’s Heart ", published December 08, 2020, on the occasion of the 150th Anniversary of the proclamation of St. Joseph as the Patron of the Universal Church. It was Blessed Pius IX, by the decree Quemadmodum Deus, signed on December 8, 1870, who bestowed this title on Saint Joseph. To celebrate this Anniversary, from December 08, 2020 to December 08, 2021, Pope Francis announced a special "Year" dedicated to the Guardian of Jesus. Therefore, we will dedicate our next few daily reflections to Saint Joseph.
I believe that Pope Francis' Apostolic Letter "Patris Corde" ("With a Father’s Heart ") is one of the best ofhis letters I have read so far. It is a response to the anxieties of our time and fears for the future. And all this in the story of Holy Father Francis about Joseph, who became the inspiration to declare Him the Patron of this Year. When Holy Father Francis announced the Year of Saint Joseph, I was very happy. He is probably the only Saint who obtained so many favors for me. My only regret is that I "discovered" Him so late, although, no matter how long we know each other: He helps anyway.
Pope Francis noted that St. Joseph specifically expressed his legal fatherhood by "making his life a sacrifice of himself in love for the service to the Messiah." In him, " Jesus saw the tender love of God", a tenderness that "allows us to accept our weakness", because it "brings about most of God's plans. Joseph is also a father in obedience to God: through his "fiat" he saves Mary and Jesus and teaches his adopted Son to "do the Father's will". “Saint Joseph was called by God to serve the person and mission of Jesus directly through the exercise of his fatherhood” and that in this way, “he cooperated in the fullness of time in the great mystery of salvation and is truly a minister of salvation”.
Joseph's language was tenderness. Pope’s Letter deals with many amazing threads and interesting interpretations of the life of St. Joseph. One of them is the tender attitude that St. Joseph had towards Mary and Jesus. "Tenderness is the best way to touch what is fragile in us," writes Francis. It speaks of Saint Joseph's fatherhood in the context of our relationship to God. Francis writes that Jesus actually learned paternity from Joseph and - interestingly - perhaps this was their account that inspired the parable of the prodigal son and the merciful father (Lk 15: 11-32). “The logic of love is always the logic of freedom, and Joseph knew how to love with extraordinary freedom. He never made himself the center of things. He did not think of himself but focused instead on the lives of Mary and Jesus” writes the Pope.
At the same time, Joseph is "a father in welcoming" because he "welcomes Mary without prior conditions", which is an important gesture also today - Francis states - "in this world where psychological, verbal and physical violence against women is evident." But Mary's husband is also the one who, trusting in the Lord, accepts in his life events that he does not understand, leaving aside all doubts and accepting his own story. Through Saint Joseph, God is telling us: "Do not be afraid!" "Faith gives meaning to every happy or sad event" and makes us realize that "God can make flowers sprout among the rocks." Joseph never "looks for shortcuts", but faces reality "with open eyes, taking personal responsibility for it."
The letter "Patris Corde" also emphasizes the "creative courage" of St. Joseph. It manifests itself especially in difficulties and sometimes brings out from a personunexpected possibility. "The Carpenter of Nazareth," explains the Pope, "can turn a problem into an opportunity, always trusting in Providence. "Consequently, every poor, needy, suffering or dying person, every stranger, every prisoner, every infirm person is ‘the child’ whom Joseph continues to protect”.From him one should learn "to love the Church and the poor". "It is necessary to understand - Francis writes - the importance of work that gives dignity" and "becomes a participation in the very work of salvation" and also "an opportunity for development" for ourselves and our family.
Inspired by the work of the Polish writer Jan Dobraczyński, the Pope describes Joseph’s fatherhood in relation to Jesus as "the shadow of the Heavenly Father on earth". "Fathers are not born, but made,” says Pope Francis. “A man does not become a father simply by bringing a child into the world, but by taking up the responsibility to care for that child.” Unfortunately, in today’s society, children “often seem orphans, lacking fathers” who are able to introduce them “to life and reality.” Children, the pope says, need fathers who will not try to dominate them, but instead raise them to be “capable of deciding for themselves, enjoying freedom and exploring new possibilities.”
This is the sense in which St. Joseph is described as a “most chaste” father, which is the opposite of domineering possessiveness. Joseph, says Pope Francis, “knew how to love with extraordinary freedom. He never made himself the center of things. He did not think of himself but focused instead on the lives of Mary and Jesus.” Joseph stands out, therefore, as an exemplary figure for our time, in a world that “needs fathers,” and not “tyrants”; a society that “rejects those who confuse authority with authoritarianism, service with servility, discussion with oppression, charity with a welfare mentality, power with destruction.”
True fathers, instead, “refuse to live the lives of their children for them,” and instead respect their freedom. In this sense, says Pope Francis, a father realizes that “he is most a father and an educator at the point when he becomes ‘useless,’ when he sees that his child has become independent and can walk the paths of life unaccompanied.” Being a father, the pope emphasizes, “has nothing to do with possession, but is rather a ‘sign’ pointing to a greater fatherhood”: that of the “heavenly Father”.
Another thread that touched me tremendously was Francis' use of the phrase "creative courage". This is what Joseph had, acting with courage, fleeing to Egypt at night, seeking refuge or helping Mary and Jesus. After all, it was not that easy. Such was the faith and creative courage of the friends of the paralytic who lowered him from the roof to introduce their companion to Jesus. It is faith that is based on trust that God will never abandon me. Even when I do not see His action at a given moment in my life. With this letter, Pope Francis wants to free us from apathy and complaints about our lives. He encourages people to take matters into their own hands from time to time.
" If at times God seems not to help us, surely this does not mean that we have been abandoned, but instead are being trusted to plan, to be creative, and to find solutions ourselves.," writes Francis. In an interesting way, the Pope encourages us to accept our story, as St. Joseph. It is this acceptance that can open us to the novelty of life and everyday life. “The truth that comes from God does not condemn us, but accepts us, embraces us, supports us, forgives us. The truth always appears to us as the merciful father in the parable”. Francis directly says that if we do not come to reconcile with our history, our life, God will not be able to work miracles with us. Joseph did just that. His spiritual path was not a path of explanation but of acceptance that allowed him to trust God.
The letter "Patris Corde" ended with a prayer to St. Joseph also shows, in footnote no. 10, the custom of Holy Father Francis. “Every day, for over forty years, following Lauds I have recited a prayer to Saint Joseph taken from a nineteenth-century French prayer book of the Congregation of the Sisters of Jesus and Mary. It expresses devotion and trust, and even poses a certain challenge to Saint Joseph: “Glorious Patriarch Saint Joseph, whose power makes the impossible possible, come to my aid in these times of anguish and difficulty. Take under your protection the serious and troubling situations that I commend to you, that they may have a happy outcome. My beloved father, all my trust is in you. Let it not be said that I invoked you in vain, and since you can do everything with Jesus and Mary, show me that your goodness is as great as your power. Amen.”
The publication of the Apostolic Letter "Patris Corde" is accompanied by the Decree of the Apostolic Penitentiary linking the "Year of Saint Joseph" announced by the Pope with the gift of special indulgences. Special indications concern days traditionally dedicated to the memory of Saint Joseph, such as on March 19 and May 1, as well as the sick and the elderly "in the current context of health risks".
As an attachment I am sending you in the Apostolic Letter "Patris corde - With a Father’s Heart".Brothers and Sisters let us take advantage of this beautiful gift from our Holy Father Francis.
Until Tomorrow
fr. george