Virgo Potens

1 of 2 Month of the St. Joseph ~ March 31st 3rd Point — St. Joseph’s Seventh Joy Consideration.— At last their efforts were rewarded. After a fruitless search of three long terrible days, St. Joseph and Our Blessed Lady found the Child Jesus in the Temple disputing with the doctors of the law. What rapture of unspeakable delight, to clasp once more their Treasure to their hearts. The night is past, the light is come into their lives again. His presence changes all their sorrow into joy. Application.— Thus it is that God hastens to console His faithful servants, who, putting all their trust in Him, seek Him in their days of sorrow with an earnest loving heart. He gives them back far more than He deprived them of. He rewards their patience and humilitv a thousandfold. (continued below)

Invocation Grant O holy Joseph, that ever secure under thy protection, we may pass our lives without guilt. Fac nos innócuam Ioseph, decúrrere vitam, sitque tuo semper tuta patrocínio. 300 days, once a day. Leo XII, March 18, 1882. (The Raccolta, 1910)

Prayer to St Joseph, Patron of the Universal Church O MOST powerful Patriarch, St Joseph, Patron of that universal Church which has always invoked thee in anxieties and tribulations; from the lofty seat of thy glory lovingly regard the Catholic world. Let it move thy paternal heart to see the mystical Spouse of Christ and his Vicar weakened by sorrow and persecuted by powerful enemies. We beseech thee, by the most bitter suffering thou didst experience on earth, to wipe away in mercy the tears of the revered Pontiff, to defend and liberate him, and to intercede with the Giver of peace and charity, that every hostile power being overcome and every error being destroyed, the whole Church may serve the God of all blessings in perfect liberty: ut destructis adversitatibus et erroribus universis Ecclesia secura Deo serviat libertate. Amen. 100 Days, once a day. Leo XIII, 1882 (The Raccolta, 1910)

Month of the St. Joseph ~ March 30th Application.— It is thus that God is pleased at times to try even His dearest and most faithful friends. He seems to withdraw His presence from them. They are cold and slothful, without fervour or devotion. All is hard and painful. They resemble the Apostles, overtaken in the night upon the sea of Galilee, storm-tossed, vainly trying to make headway against the winds and waves, threatened every instant with destruction. Affections and Resolutions.— In times of spiritual desolation to imitate Mary and Joseph in diligently seeking Jesus. Or, with the Apostles in the storm, to cry to Jesus, “Lord save us, we are perishing.” ~ Rev. Joseph McDonnell, S.J., St. Joseph, A Novena of Meditations and Prayers (1926)

PETITIONS for ST. JOSEPH’S BLESSING BLESS ME, O dearly beloved father St. Joseph; bless my body and my soul; bless my resolutions, my words and deeds, all my actions and omissions, my every step; bless all that I possess, all my interior and  exterior goods, that all may redound to the greater honor of God. Bless me for time and eternity, and preserve me from every sin. Obtain for me the grace to make atonement for all my sins by love and contrition here on earth, so that after my last breath I may, without delay, prostrate at thy feet return thee thanks in heaven for all the love and goodness thou, O dearest father, hast shown me here below. Amen. Favorite Prayers to Saint Joseph (1997)

Month of the St. Joseph ~ March 29th 2nd Point — St. Joseph’s Seventh Sorrow Consideration.— Just one great sorrow broke in upon the calm and sweetness of St. Joseph’s life at Nazareth. It was the loss of the Divine Child. Jesus was now twelve years of age, and for the first time He accompanied His parents in their annual visit to the Temple. Coming home they missed Him. With agonising fears they hurried back to the city. Haggard and wayworn, with looks that bordered on distraction, for three whole days, that passed like centuries, they wandered searching for Him through the squares and streets and public places of Jerusalem. They scanned the faces in the crowded thoroughfares, they made their way into the most unlikely places. He was nowhere to be found. Shall they never see their Child again ? The thought was agony itself. The hearts of Joseph and his Blessed Spouse were wrung with grief. ~ Rev. Joseph McDonnell, S.J., St. Joseph, A Novena of Meditations and Prayers (1926)

PRAYER to ST. JOSEPH Before Holy Mass O BLESSED Joseph, happy man, to whom whom it was given not only to see and to hear that God Whom many kings longed to see, and saw not, to hear, and heard not; but also to carry Him in thy arms to embrace Him, to clothe Him, and guard and defend Him. ℣ Pray for us, O Blessed Joseph. ℟ That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. Let us pray. O God, Who hast given unto us a royal priesthood, we beseech Thee, that as Blessed Joseph was found worthy to touch with his hands, and to bear in his arms, Thy only-begotten Son, born of the Virgin Mary, so may we be made fit, by cleanness of heart and blamelessness of life, to minister at Thy holy altar; may we, this day, with reverent devotion partake of the Sacred Body and Blood of Thy Only-begotten Son, and may we in the world to come be accounted worthy of receiving an everlasting reward. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen. An indulgence of 3 years. ~ St. Joseph Daily Missal, 1956

2 of 2 Month of St. Joseph ~ March 28th 4th. It was a home of Charity. A most perfect union existed between the members of the Holy Family, undisturbed by even the slightest word, or act or look, that could in the least detract from the most refined and thoughtful exercise of charity. Affections and Resolutions.— I will consider how I stand in these regards, and, with St. Joseph's help, will strive to make my home, whether in religion or in the world, a little less unlike the home of Nazareth. ~ Rev. Joseph McDonnell, S.J., St. Joseph, A Novena of Meditations and Prayers (1926)

1 of 2 Month of the St. Joseph ~ March 28th 3rd. It was a home of progress in perfection. No pen could picture, no words describe, the rapid and marvellous advances in the love of God, in prayer, in every species of perfection, made during these silent years at Nazareth by the members of the Holy Family. The Infant Saviour, as He grew from childhood into manhood, advanced in the outward manifestations of the wisdom and grace that were essentially within Him. And Mary and St. Joseph advanced with wondrous and ever-increasing strides in the sublime holiness and grace that were the natural outcome of their intimate and constant union with the Man-God. (continued below)

PRAYER O JOSEPH, virgin father of JESUS, most pure spouse of the Virgin Mary, pray for us daily to the SON of GOD, that, armed with the weapons of His grace, we may fight as we ought in life, and be crowned by Him in death. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ O JOSEPH, Virgo pater JESU, purissime sponsæ Virginis Maríæ, quotidie deprecare pro nobis ipsum JESUM FILIUM DEI, ut, armis suæ gratiæ muniti, legitime certantes in vita ab eodem coronemur in morte. 100 days, twice a day. Pius X, Nov. 26, 1906 (The Raccolta, 1910)

Month of the St. Joseph ~ March 27th Application.— The Holy Home of Nazareth, over which St. Joseph presided as superior, was, 1st, a home of discipline and order. There was loving and exact submission to authority, punctual observance of the duties of the day, all that constitutes a regular and well regulated home or community. 2nd. It was a home of contentment. Everyone was happy and contented. There was no grumbling or dissatisfaction on the part of Jesus and Mary, at the arrangements of St. Joseph. Peace and contentment, the offspring of personal holiness of life, of prayer, and of obedience, reigned in the hearts of the happy inmates of this blessed home. ~ Rev. Joseph McDonnell, S.J., St. Joseph, A Novena of Meditations and Prayers (1926)

Prayer for the Success of a Temporal Affair O great St. Joseph, whose influence over the Hearts of Jesus and Mary is all powerful and who hast never been invoked in vain, I ask, with the most firm and lively confidence, the speedy granting of my request. (State your petition.) Dear St. Joseph, obtain for me the object of my prayer if it be for the glory of God and my own salvation; but if it is not, then obtain for me the grace lovingly to resign myself to the Will of my Heavenly Father, who in the afflictions He permits, as well as in the temporal favors He grants me, has in view only my happiness here and my eternal salvation. Amen. (Say the Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be, three times, to thank God for the privileges bestowed upon St. Joseph.) Favorite Prayers to Saint Joseph (1997)

Month of the St. Joseph ~ March 26th The Seven Joys and Sorrows of St. Joseph (continued) 1st Prelude — Picture to yourself the Holy Home of Nazareth ; see St. Joseph working in the workshop at his trade with Jesus Christ. 2nd Prelude — Ask for grace to understand and sympathise with the Joys and Sorrows of St. Joseph. 1st Point — St. Joseph’s Sixth Joy Consideration.— At length his wanderings are over. Now, at last he can in peace and quiet settle down with Jesus and Mary in the old place at Nazareth. Henceforth his days, with one exception, will be days of silent prayer and work, of holy contemplation, of sweetest union with Jesus and Mary, the dearest objects of his love. He is to become our model and instructor in the quiet, uneventful routine of his daily life. The Holy Home is to become the pattern of Christian homes and of religious communities in all succeeding ages. ~ Rev. Joseph McDonnell, S.J., St. Joseph, A Novena of Meditations and Prayers (1926)

❀•°❀°•❀•°❀°•❀ Temporal Miseries are to be Borne with Patience, after the Example of Jesus Christ Imitation of Christ ~ Book III, Chapter 18 CHRIST SON, I came down from Heaven for thy salvation. I took upon Me thy miseries, not of necessity, but moved thereto by charity, that thou mightest learn patience and mightest bear without repining the miseries of this life. For from the hour of My Incarnation till My expiring on the Cross, I was never without suffering. I underwent a great want of temporal things; I frequently heard many complaints against Me; I meekly bore with confusions and reproaches; for My benefits I received ingratitude; for My miracles, blasphemies; and for My heavenly doc­trine, reproaches. DISCIPLE 2. Lord, because Thou wast patient in Thy lifetime, in thus chiefly fulfilling the command­ment of Thy Father, it is fitting that I, a wretched sinner, should, according to Thy will, take all with patience and, as long as pleaseth Thee, support the burden of this corruptible life, in order to my salvation. (2 Mach. 6:25). For though this present life be burdensome, yet it is now become, through Thy grace, very meritorious and, by the help of Thine example and the footsteps of Thy saints, more supportable to the weak and more lightsome. It is also much more consoling than it was formerly under the Old Law, when the gate of Heaven remained shut and the way to it seemed more obscure, when so few concerned them­selves to seek the Kingdom of Heaven. Neither could they, who were then just and to be saved, enter into Thy heavenly Kingdom, before Thy Passion and the payment of our debt by Thy sacred death. Oh, what great thanks am I obliged to re­turn to Thee for having vouchsafed to show to me and to all the faithful a right and good way to an everlasting Kingdom. For Thy life is our way, and by holy patience we walk on to Thee, Who art our crown. (John 14:6). If Thou hadst not gone before and instructed us who would have cared to follow? Alas, how many would have stayed afar off and a great way behind, if they had not before their eyes Thine excellent example? Behold we are still tepid, notwithstanding all Thy miracles and the instructions we have heard: what then would it have been if we had not this great light to follow Thee. ~ Thomas á Kempis, The Imitation of Christ. Translated by the Right Rev. Richard Challoner, D.D. ❀•°❀°•❀•°❀°•❀

Month of the St. Joseph ~ March 25th Application.— Yet all this happened while the Hand of Providence was guiding the footsteps of St. Joseph. He abandoned himself to the Divine guidance, blindly, trustfully, and lovingly, a true model of obedience. Affections and Resolutions.— O glorious Saint ! obtain for me through life, in joy and sorrow and doubt, in storm and sunshine, ever to give myself without reserve into the hands of God. How happy am I if I am under the direction of obedience. At any rate I will always ask of God in all things to direct my steps. Colloquy with St. Joseph. Spiritual Reading.— “Imitation of Christ” Book III., Chapter 18. ~ Rev. Joseph McDonnell, S.J., St. Joseph, A Novena of Meditations and Prayers (1926)

2 of 2 TO THEE, O BLESSED JOSEPH (continued from above) Most watchful Guardian of the Holy Family, protect the chosen people of Jesus Christ; keep far from us, most loving father, all blight of error and corruption: mercifully assist us from heaven, most mighty defender, in this our conflict with the powers of darkness; and, even as of old thou didst rescue the Child Jesus from the supreme peril of His Life, so now defend God's holy Church from the snares of the enemy and from all adversity; keep us one and all under thy continual protection, that, we may be supported by thine example and thine assistance, may be enabled to lead a holy life, die a happy death and come at last to the possession of everlasting blessedness in heaven. Amen. An indulgence of 3 years. An indulgence of 7 years during the month of October, when said after the recitation of the Rosary. A plenary indulgence once a month, on the usual conditions, for the daily recitation of this prayer. (Leo XIII, Encyclical Aug. 15, 1889; S. C. Ind., Sept. 21, 1889; S. P. Ap., May 17, 1927 and Dec. 13, 1935). The Raccolta (1943)

1 of 2 TO THEE, O BLESSED JOSEPH TO thee, O blessed Joseph, do we have recourse in our tribulation, and, having implored the help of thy thrice-holy Spouse, we confidently invoke thy patronage also. By that charity wherewith thou wast united to the immaculate Virgin Mother of God, and by that fatherly affection with which thou didst embrace the Child Jesus, we beseech thee and we humbly pray, that thou wouldst look graciously upon the inheritance which Jesus Christ hath purchased by His Blood, and assist us in our needs by thy power and strength. (continued)

1 of 2 TO THEE, O BLESSED JOSEPH TO thee, O blessed Joseph, do we have recourse in our tribulation, and, having implored the help of thy thrice-holy Spouse, we confidently invoke thy patronage also. By that charity wherewith thou wast united to the immaculate Virgin Mother of God, and by that fatherly affection with which thou didst embrace the Child Jesus, we beseech thee and we humbly pray, that thou wouldst look graciously upon the inheritance which Jesus Christ hath purchased by His Blood, and assist us in our needs by thy power and strength. (continued)

2 of 2 Month of St. Joseph ~ March 24th Again an angel stood beside him in the night and told him that Herod was now dead, and that he might return to the land of Israel. And so, a second time, he made the weary journey across the sandy deserts that lay between him and his home. But, when wearied out and footsore, he arrived in his own country, we may well picture his dismay and disappointment to discover that Archelaus, the son of Herod, was now upon the throne, and that, thus apparently, the danger to the life of the Divine Child was in no wise lessened. ~ Rev. Joseph McDonnell, S.J., St. Joseph, A Novena of Meditations and Prayers (1926)

1 of 2 Month of the St. Joseph ~ March 24th 3rd Point — St. Joseph’s Sixth Sorrow Consideration.— How long St. Joseph tarried in the land of banishment, we do not know with any certainty. He must have had much to suffer, and have found it hard, a stranger as he was, unfriended and unknown, to secure the means of subsistence for the Holy Family. He must have longed for the day of return to his native land. At last the summons came. (continued below)