With a father’s heart

Fr. Livio Tonello, director

The apostolic letter on Saint Joseph begins with the words “with a father’s heart” that is how “the patriarch of Nazareth” loved Jesus whom all four Gospels refer to as the “son of Joseph”. This apostolic letter published on 8 December 2020 brings the memory of the Church back to Pope Pius IX who, on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception in 1870, proclaimed St Joseph the Patron of the Universal Church.

The Apostolic Penitentiary issued a Decree by mandate of the Holy Father granting plenary indulgences to the faithful for the duration of this special year of St. Joseph proclaimed by the Pope. The plenary indulgence is granted to the faithful under the usual conditions to Christians who participate in the Year of St. Joseph on these occasions and manners indicated by the Apostolic Penitentiary following St Joseph example performing five spiritual or corporal works of charity.

Describing the extraordinary figure of St Joseph Pope Francis underlines the strong connection with him and our human condition and suffering especially in the dramatic months of the pandemic. Amid the crisis we experienced how “our lives are woven together and sustained by ordinary people, people often overlooked. People who do not appear in newspaper and magazine headlines, or on the latest television show, yet in these very days are surely shaping the decisive events of our history.

How many people exercise patience daily and instill hope. How many fathers, mothers, grandparents and teachers show our children, every day in small ways, how to accept and deal with a crisis by adjusting their routines, looking ahead and encouraging the practice of prayer. How many pray, make sacrifices and intercede for the good of all”.

Then Pope Francis describes the human and spiritual qualities of St Joseph and his special traits that make of him a model for the church. He is a “beloved father” because he made his life a sacrificial service to the mystery of incarnation and to the mission of Redemption of the Son of God. He is “a tender and loving Father” because he teaches us to draw from faith to be merciful with all human beings.

He is an accepting father as “he welcomes others as they are without exception”. He is a “creatively courageous father” because by taking loving care of Jesus he invites us to imitate him by taking onto our shoulders the suffering of our brothers who are image of a God who has taken upon himself our infirmities; he is the “father in the shadows” because he exercised his fatherhood without imposing his authority but respecting the freedom of his Son. “Each of us can discover in Joseph – the man who goes unnoticed, a daily, discreet and hidden presence – an intercessor, a support and a guide in times of trouble. Saint Joseph reminds us that those who appear hidden or in the shadows can play an incomparable role in the history of salvation”.

Dear benefactors of the Association I think that you too play an incomparable role helping in a discreet and generous way people in need with a father’s heart.