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Bishop Matthew Ustrzycki – Feast of St. Joseph

Bishop Matthew Ustrzycki

Feast of St. Joseph
Thursday March 19, 2020 10:30AM
Carmel of St. Joseph – St. Agatha 

 Reverend Fathers;
Reverend Religious Sisters;
My dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ.

Again, it is a delight and honour to be here on this beautiful feast of St. Joseph – at the invitation of Mother Celeste and the Sisters of the Carmel of St. Joseph.

We have gathered here to honour the foster father of Jesus and to praise Our Heavenly Father for giving us here in Canada such a great patron saint.

So little is written about St. Joseph in sacred scripture; yet so much has been written about him through the centuries and recorded throughout the history of the Catholic Church for faithful Christians to ponder on his life.

His life teaches us not to be afraid; not to run away from our problems; but to go to him to intercede for us before his foster Son and Our Heavenly Father. Let’s face it, looking around at the world today, it can be difficult to find the light shining in the midst of what seems to be a lot of darkness. Our spirits won’t be lifted up by turning on the nightly news or reading the newspaper.

It’s easy to be consumed by the anxieties and daily struggles of family life, especially when faced with illnesses, unemployment and so many other burdens. While our culture would have us turn to distractions or self-medicating activities that make many promises but don’t actually deliver; our faith holds up another way. We see this in the early life of St. Joseph.

St. Joseph believed and had hope. As for him, so for us, hope opens our eyes to see the deeper reality of life; to know that this passing world is not the end, because we were made for heaven. It means living with our gaze fixed on the promise of eternal life, which changes how we see the present moment. It means as the catechism says – “Standing confidently expecting the Heavenly Father’s blessing”.

So often, we place limits on God by asking too little from Him. Yes, He wants to give us Himself. St. Thérèse de Lisieux encourages us by telling us that … “We can never have too much confidence in the Good God who is so powerful and so merciful. We obtain from Him as much as we hope for.” This was evident in the life of St. Joseph.

 The truth is, hoping for much from God takes courage. This was evident in the life of St. Joseph. It is tempting to live our lives constantly grasping for control; it feels safer to cling to what we can acquire, fix, or produce.

But actual Christian hope takes a risk. It means daring to hope in the goodness of the Heavenly Father. It means believing in Who He is and What He says, most especially through His Son. This we find in sacred scripture and the teaching of the Catholic Church.

In a time when there is much confusion in our world and a little in the Church, let us with Mary, the spouse of Joseph and with St. Joseph, turn our faces to their eternal Son for He is the Way, the Truth and the Life.

God bless you.

Praise the Lord