The Merciful Jesus repeatedly appeared to St. Faustina. He asked her to be a witness of His Mercy and to convey this message to the whole world. The Blessed Virgin Mary also occupied a special place in the spirituality of the Polish mystic, as she taught Faustina to contemplate the Savior in her soul and to obey His will.
St. Joseph’s visions are also an interesting part of her biography.
St. Joseph’s silence
The Gospel passages including St. Joseph don’t convey a single word spoken by him. Pope Francis calls the guardian of the Holy Family a man of “silent proclamation,” listening to God. And although none of the Evangelists recorded a single word of St. Joseph’s, that doesn’t mean he had nothing to say.
St. John Paul II wrote in his exhortation Redemptoris Custos that St. Joseph’s apparent silence reveals his inner life in a unique way. Pope Benedict XVI added that his faith-filled attitude filled his every action.
Sister Faustina’s visions of St. Joseph
St. Sister Faustina became convinced of this. The nun first saw the earthly father of Jesus on February 2, 1936, the day the Church celebrates the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple. The Apostle of Divine Mercy writes about it in her Diary (608):
When Mass began, a wonderful silence and joy filled my heart. Just then I saw Our Lady with the Child Jesus and St. Joseph standing behind them. The Blessed Mother said to me: “Take my dearest Treasure …” and handed me the Child Jesus. When I took the Infant Jesus in my arms, Our Lady and St. Joseph disappeared. I was left alone with the Child Jesus.
The second moment when the mystic saw St. Joseph took place on Christmas Day in 1936. She describes her experience this way (846):
During the Midnight Mass, God’s presence pierced me to the core. Moments before the Elevation (of the Host) I saw the Mother of God, the infant Jesus and the good man St. Joseph.
St. Joseph told me …
Pope Francis concludes his apostolic letter Patris corde with a prayer to the Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and elsewhere in the letter offers an observation about a prayer taken from a 19th-century French prayer book. This prayer emphasizes the goodness of St. Joseph.
The guardian of the Holy Family mentioned it to the Polish nun. This prayer was recited by members of the Congregation of the Sisters of Jesus and Mary:
Glorious Patriarch Saint Joseph, whose power makes the impossible possible, come to my aid in these times of anguish and difficulty. Take under your protection the serious and troubling situations that I commend to you, that they may have a happy outcome. My beloved father, all my trust is in you. Let it not be said that I invoked you in vain, and since you can do everything with Jesus and Mary, show me that your goodness is as great as your power. Amen.
The third instance in which St. Faustina came into direct contact with St. Joseph took place on July 30, 1937. She describes it as follows (Diary, 1203):
Saint Joseph demanded that I have a constant devotion to him. He himself told me to say three prayers [the Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory be] and the Memorare once every day. He looked at me with great kindness and gave me to know how much he supported this work. He promised me his special help and protection. I recite these requested prayers daily and feel his special protection.
A man of silence and strength
The last vision of St. Joseph that the mystic records took place on December 25, 1937. In her Diary (1442) the nun writes:
When I came to the Midnight Mass, immediately at the beginning of the Mass, I plunged myself into deep recollection, in which I saw the Nativity scene of Bethlehem filled with great brightness. The Blessed Virgin was wrapping Jesus in swaddling clothes, immersed in great love, but St. Joseph was still asleep. Only when Our Lady laid Jesus in the manger, at that moment did God’s brightness wake Joseph, who was also praying.
Pope Francis beautifully commented on the importance of Joseph sleeping and praying during his address to families in Manila on January 16, 2015. The Holy Father said:
I have great love for Saint Joseph, because he is a man of silence and strength. On my table I have an image of Saint Joseph sleeping. Even when he is asleep, he is taking care of the Church! Yes! We know that he can do that. So when I have a problem, a difficulty, I write a little note and I put it underneath Saint Joseph, so that he can dream about it! In other words I tell him: pray for this problem!
References: laikosblog.org; opiekun.kalisz.pl; faustyna.pl; misericors.org; misyjne.pl
And today we celebrate...