St. Joseph: provider for the Bread of Life

Posted: 03.27.09

St. Joseph holds a very prominent role in the life of Christ and the life of the Church. He is the husband of Mary, the mother of Christ; the patron of the universal Church; and a saint with whom all people can easily identify. He was not a prominent historical figure and very little is known about him from the sacred Scriptures. In fact, he does not speak one word in the Scriptures. From what we know, it is obvious that he was a very humble, kind and devoted father and husband who gave his total life to his family. It is also obvious that he was a hard-working man, a carpenter, who labored diligently to provide for his family. This is also why he is the patron of workers.

The Gospel of St. Mark does not refer at all to St. Joseph. The only possible reference is Mark 6:3, where Jesus is referred to as a carpenter. Some manuscripts of the New Testament have a variant text for this passage, which reads “son of a carpenter.” The Gospel of St. John only twice refers to Joseph. In these passages Jesus is referred to as “the son of Joseph” (Jn 1:45; 6:42).

We are more familiar with St. Joseph from the Gospels of St. Luke and St. Matthew and especially from their infancy narratives. These regard the birth and early years of Jesus. Both of these Gospels present genealogies of Jesus that trace his birth back to Joseph (Mt 1:2-16; Lk 3:23-38). Their aim is to demonstrate that Jesus was descended from the Davidic line and to affirm that Joseph was the legal father of Jesus. The Gospel of St. Matthew speaks of the dreams of St. Joseph in which he is given an angelic message regarding Mary and the birth of Christ (Mt 1:18-25) as well as the flight into Egypt (Mt 2:13-23).

The Gospel of St. Luke tells us of Joseph’s role at the birth of Christ in Bethlehem (Lk 2:1-15), the presentation of Jesus in the temple (Lk 2:22-39) and the finding of Jesus in the temple (Lk 2:41-51). All in all, the Gospels present Joseph as a strong but silent man whose integrity of character and faith are extraordinary. It is believed that Joseph died shortly after Jesus reached the age of 12 and nothing is heard about him in the Scriptures again.

Devotion to St. Joseph has always been a strong part of the life of the Church. His life is one that speaks to all people who can identify with his work and struggles in life. His work as a carpenter was the means by which he provided for his family. In our difficult economic times, all can identify with the struggles St. Joseph faced in this regard. He is one to whom we should turn today.

Perhaps what is not so obvious is that St. Joseph has an important association with the Eucharist. The titles under which his feasts are celebrated – St. Joseph, the Husband of Mary (March 19) and St. Joseph, the Worker (May 1) – speak clearly of his affinity toward the Eucharist.

As a laborer, St. Joseph literally provided bread for the table of Jesus and Mary. He gave bread to the one who is the Bread of Life. As Jesus spoke of himself as the “bread of life (cf Jn 6:1-71) and of the gift that he would give of himself in the Eucharist, he must have thought back to the bread which St. Joseph provided as the sustenance of his life. With loving memories, Jesus must have recalled his foster father and the sacrifices Joseph made to provide him food when he was a growing young man. With the same sacrificial love that Jesus experienced from his earthly father, he would give himself to us as our food in the bread of life. How fitting that it is, in the Johannine discourse on the bread of life, that Jesus is referred to as “the son of Joseph” (Jn 6:42). In this context, St. Joseph can truly be said to lead us to the Eucharist.

The feast of St. Joseph which we just celebrated March 19 associates Joseph with bread. It is customary to bless bread on this day in honor of St. Joseph as a sign of devotion to him. This custom came about as a result of a drought in Sicily one year during the 15th century. The people of Sicily prayed to their patron, St. Joseph, for rain and when it came they prepared a feast in his honor. The celebration became known as “St. Joseph’s Table” with St. Joseph bread being the centerpiece of the table. The bread and the table carry a eucharistic significance which is quite obvious.

As the patron of workers, St. Joseph has a special significance at Mass when the bread to be consecrated is offered up for the sacrifice. The priest prays, “Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation. Through your goodness we have this bread to offer which earth has given and human hands have made. It will become for us the bread of life.” No one more fittingly epitomizes these words than St. Joseph, who provided bread for the Bread of Life himself.

St. Joseph’s eucharistic significance is also experienced in his role as the husband of Mary. This role is a spousal one. Joseph gave himself to Mary as her husband and he is a model of spousal fidelity. Before their marriage and before Joseph knew that Mary had conceived Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit, he would do nothing to hurt Mary and would only stay faithfully by her side. Joseph was totally loyal as a spouse to Mary. The relationship of Christ to the Church is a spousal one. The Church is the Bride of Christ. Like St. Joseph gave himself to Mary, Christ gives himself to the Church in complete love and surrender. This surrender of spousal fidelity is fully realized in the sacrament of the Eucharist. In this context, St. Joseph can be said to lead us to the Eucharist.

On more than one occasion, both Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI have referred to the eucharistic significance of St. Joseph. When Pope John Paul II celebrated Mass at the Shrine of St. Joseph in Poland in June of 1997, he referred to the fact that it was his custom to pray to St. Joseph before celebrating Mass. The reason he expressed was that he was to hold in his hands the body and blood of Christ, which St. Joseph held in his hands in such a loving and caring manner.

In May of 2007, Pope Benedict XVI spoke of the eucharistic significance of St. Joseph in his Angelus message. Here, he referred to St. Joseph as the one whom God placed at the side of Mary, “the Woman of the Eucharist.” With such a significant role next to “the Woman of the Eucharist,” Pope Benedict invoked St. Joseph, his own patron, to bring Christ’s love to all humanity through the celebration of the Eucharist.

St. Joseph does indeed hold a prominent place in the life of the Church and in the lives of each and every one of us. By his own life, he has much to speak of the sublime mystery of the Eucharist. He does so in a most simple fashion by reminding us of the dignity of work through which bread comes to the table and to the altar. He also does so by reminding us of the primacy of love through which Christ gives himself to us as the bread of life. May St. Joseph, who provided bread for the Bread of Life himself, lead us to the true bread of life in the Eucharist!

Return to the Diocese of Palm Beach Front Page