Start Your Novena

Today begins the Novena of the Solemnity of St Joseph. This is a time of preparation. How will you prepare? Here are some recommendations:

• Joe was silent. Avoid unnecessary conversations.
• Joe was a refugee and homeless. Donate a little money to an organization that helps immigrants and the homeless. (e.g. CRS, Cleveland Catholic Charities, etc.)
• Joe was faithful in observing the Mosaic Law. Go to the Sacrament of Confession and Reconciliation.
• Joe knew the voice of the Lord. Spend a few minutes in prayer with God.
• Joe welcomed Mary and Jesus into his home. Call a family member that you haven’t spoken to in a while.
• Joe was a model worker. Extend a special ‘Thank you’ to a cashier or server.
• Joe died in the presence of Jesus and Mary. Pray for those who are dying.

Just a little laugh

Today begins our Lenten journey towards the Easter Triduum. In today’s Gospel at Mass, Jesus says to us, “When you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites.” (Matthew 6:16) So, why not a little laugh today?

Fasting and Hardship with the Holy Family

Only a more than a month before she died (on August 20, 1897), St. Therese of Lisieux shared this little reflection on the Holy Family:

"How charming it will be in heaven to know everything that took place in the Holy Family! When little Jesus began to grow up, perhaps when He saw the Blessed Virgin fasting, He said to her: 'I would really like to fast, too.' And the Blessed Virgin answered: 'No, little Jesus, You are still too little, You haven't the strength.' Or else perhaps she didn't dare hinder Him from doing this.

And good St. Joseph! Oh, how I love him! He wan't able to fast because of his work. I can see him planing, then drying his forehead from time to time. Oh, how I pity him! It seems to me that their life was simple...

What does me a lot of good when I think of the Holy Family is to imagine a life that was very ordinary. For example, [the apocryphal Infancy Gospel of Thomas, 3 says] that the Child Jesus, after having formed some birds out of clay, breathed upon them and gave them life. Ah, no! little Jesus didn't perform useless miracles like that, even to please His Mother. Why weren't they transported into Egypt by a miracle which would have been necessary and so easy for God. In the twinkling of an eye, they could have been brought there. No, everything in their life was done just as in our own.

How many troubles, disappointments! How many times did others make complaints to good St.  Joseph! How many times did they refuse to pay him for his work! Oh, how astonished we would be if we only knew ho much they had to suffer!"

(Taken from St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Her Last Conversations, ICS Publications, 1977, page 159)

Lent: Our Journey to Bethlehem

Today, we begin lenten journey of fasting, which I would like to suggest is our annual journey to Bethlehem. The name 'Bethlehem' literally means 'House of Bread', and why would anyone go to a house of bread, if one had plenty of bread? We lack bread—not just any bread, but the "living bread that came down from heaven" (John 6:51). In other words, we are running short on the life of Christ, and we need to travel year after year and replenish ourselves; this is one reason why we as Catholics need to receive Communion at least (frequently is encouraged) once during this time of Lent and Easter.

I'm reminded of a scene from The Nativity Story, one of my favorite movie renditions of the Infancy Narratives (you can watch it here). There is a scene (01:02:20 - 01:06:00) that demonstrates the role Joe has in our journey to Bethlehem. At the beginning of the scene, there is another traveling family whose donkey stumbles and falls. Joe says to Mary, "Their animal is weak."

Following this scene, Mary and Joe break for the night, but before sleeping, they partake of the simple meal of bread. Joe prays a traditional Jewish prayer that can be translated as "Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for through your goodness we have received the bread we offer you: fruit of the earth and work of human hands, it will become for us the bread of life." (If this prayer sounds familiar, it's because the priest prays this prayer at every Mass; although, you might not hear him all the time.) Then Joe breaks the bread and gives half to Mary, he takes a bite from the other half and then puts the rest of his half into his satchel bag.

We then take a quick break to watch the three magi re-find their bearings (which is what we do in the Mass), and then we're back to the Holy Family. In this part of the scene. Joe takes that piece of his half of the bread and gives it to their donkey. Joe feeds the donkey from his half of the bread! He's probably been doing this the whole trip, which is why Mary and Joe's donkey is not weak, like the other family's.

This scene is significant because it visualizes what happens at every Mass. Joe is the priest, we are the donkey, and Mary is the whole Church. We are only able to travel through Lent with the difficulties of our lenten practices (indeed, all of life), because we are fed the Bread of Life by the hand of the priest, who took bread, broke it, and gave to us some from his part.

So, as we begin and enter into this Lenten Journey—our journey to Bethlehem—let us turn to Joe who does give to us the nourishment that gives us strength to continue to encounter the Lord face-to-face!