Why we 'go to Joseph' as our spiritual father

Saint Joseph is not quoted in the Gospels, yet he is present and makes difficult decisions during critical moments in the lives of Mary and Jesus. He often is described as the archetypal “strong, silent type.”

Yet anyone who heard Elizabeth Lev’s excellent presentation at Summit East 2022 in Florida in January learned that the history of Christian art reveals how the faithful didn’t always know what to make of Joseph. He didn’t appear in Christian art until the fourth century, and then often was depicted as a background character in biblical scenes. Only centuries later did he emerge as a strong figure, a protector of Mary, foster father to Jesus, a man of exemplary virtue worthy of a feast day.

St. Joseph: Our Spiritual Father, produced by the Knights of Columbus, aptly explains Joseph’s significance and why he remains such a powerful model and intercessor for us today. The hourlong documentary aired on ABC affiliates last fall and is now available free on YouTube and the Knights’ website (kofc.org).

“The Church has always recognized Mary as our spiritual mother, [but] the Church hasn’t always understood that same significance for St. Joseph, that he’s our spiritual father,” Fr. Donald Calloway, M.I.C., says in the film. He is the author of Consecration to St. Joseph, a theme that appears in several touching personal stories from around the globe that pepper the riveting program.

Saint Teresa of Avila, the 16th-century Carmelite mystic, found Joseph to be such a wonderful intercessor that she advised the faithful to
“Go to Joseph!” That urging is echoed in the voices of individuals and families whose lives were transformed when they discovered devotion to Joseph.

Although Joseph has no “lines” in Scripture, Mother Agnes Mary Donovan, S.V., notes in the film that “we know he said one word, and that word was ‘Jesus,’ because he would have had to have given Jesus His name at His circumcision.”

It makes sense: the strong, silent Joseph, model disciple and spiritual father, always points us to Jesus.

GERALD KORSON is a Legatus magazine editorial consultant and staff writer.