Feast of St. Joseph

Feast of St. Joseph 19 March

Little is known about the spouse of the Virgin Mary and foster-father of the child Jesus. He was a carpenter from Nazareth who, by tradition, died when Jesus was still young. As protector of the Virgin Mary and her Son, so too he is protector of our Order.

Prayer

Almighty God, at the beginning of our salvation, when Mary conceived your Son and brought him forth into the world, you placed them under Joseph’s watchful care. May his prayer still help your Church to be an equally faithful guardian of your mysteries, and a sign of Christ to mankind. We ask this through Christ, our Lord.

Scripture Readings

Samuel 7:4-5, 12-14, 16; Romans 4:13, 16-18, 22; Gospel – Matthew 1:16, 18-21, 24 or Luke 2:41-51.

Texts taken from the “Carmelite Proper of the Liturgy of the Hours,” Institutum Carmelitanum, Rome: 1993.