St. Joseph, Patron of the Interior Life
While on retreat the retreat master in one of his meditations reflected that St. Joseph was the patron of the interior life. That is the life of the soul and prayerful connection with God. I reflected on this throughout the retreat, and I could see why he had said this. St. Joseph is never recorded saying anything in the Gospels, he exemplifies the silence of voice and heart necessary to hear the voice of God. Yet we see him respond obediently to the Lord’s promptings in dreams again and again. He is also described as a “just man” in the Gospel, implying that he lived an integral and holy life ordered toward the Lord. (Psalm 1) Plus, St. Joseph also protected the Christ Child and the Blessed Mother from harm. All this adds up to a man who was totally centered on the Lord and desired to do God’s will no matter the costs.
What a beautiful thing it is that St. Joseph is the patron of our Family of Parishes, who also serves as an intercessor to deepen our friendship with Christ in our life of prayer. I want to encourage you to think about one small thing you could do in your life to deepen your friendship with Jesus. Perhaps it is reading from the New Testament for five minutes a day, stopping by the church to make a short visit to Jesus’ True Presence in the tabernacle, or reading the upcoming Sunday’s gospel early in the week and trying to reflect on the passage throughout the week. Whatever it may be, you can do it!
As we continue to approach Lent, I would like to suggest a “suggested” practice for our Family of Parishes. As mentioned above silence and distraction can be a hinderance to our life of prayer. I would encourage you to consider fasting from social media during the Lenten season. Whether by limiting the use of social media or giving up social media altogether, by doing so you will experience a freedom and opportunity to embrace a digital simplicity in your life and see your ability to relate with those in front of you and Jesus increase. This is just a suggestion.
One of the precepts of the Catholic Church is to provide for the material needs of the Church. Please reach out to the parish office to get envelopes to begin giving if you have not already. Each parish now also has the option to give by electronic fund transfer (EFT) which is another option if you are not already giving, or you can adjust the way you give to EFT if that is more convenient for you. Again, you can reach out to the parish office for more information. We appreciate the generosity you have already shown and are grateful for your continued support.
We had our first sacraments retreats for the 2nd graders that are preparing to receive First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion along with their parents. Each of the two retreats in the St. Joseph Family were beautiful and it was awesome to see our young people and their parents come together to seek a deeper relationship with our loving God.
Thank you to everyone who helped with those First Sacraments Retreats whether it was an employee, catechists, volunteers, those who provided food, and the priests. It was a team effort and a wonderful opportunity to invest in our families.
Peace in Christ,
Fr. Jarred Kohn