Blessed Virgin Mary Catholic School recognizes Saint Joseph a little extra this week. Why? Of course, St. Joseph is the spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary which is the patron of the school. However, even more relevant this week is that Saturday, March 19 ^th is The Solemnity of Saint Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It’s also known as the Feast of St. Joseph or St. Joseph’s Day.

Saint Joseph was Mary’s husband and Jesus’s earthly father. He was faithful to God in accepting Mary’s child and God’s will for their family’s life not knowing the outcome.

St. Joseph is known as the patron Saint of the Universal Church, families, fathers, expectant mothers, travelers, immigrants, house sellers and buyers, craftsmen, engineers and working people, among others.

Here are 3 ways you can pray to St. Joseph for his intercession.

1. Help with WORK:

We know St. Joseph to be a carpenter and one of his patronages is labor and of working people. The following is a prayer to Saint Joseph brought to us by Pope Pius X. This Prayer is to inspire a Christian attitude toward work. It is easy to murmur at the sight of work or to not use our talents in a way which God is calling us to.

It is also important to note the fact that his trade was not highly regarded by worldly men. This is a great reminder that it is more important to develop the spiritual qualities which he exemplified than to strive for material success.

Prayer to Saint Joseph:

Glorious St. Joseph, model of all who devote their lives to labor,
obtain for me the grace to work in the spirit of penance
in order thereby to atone for my many sins;

to work conscientiously,
setting devotion to duty in preference to my own whims;
to work with thankfulness and joy,
deeming it an honor to employ and to develop by my labor
the gifts I have received from God;
to work with order, peace, moderation, and patience,
without ever shrinking from weariness and difficulties;

to work above all with a pure intention and with detachment from self,
having always before my eyes the hour of death
and the accounting which I must then render of time ill spent,
of talents wasted, of good omitted, and of vain complacency in success,
which is so fatal to the work of God.

All for Jesus, all through Mary, all in imitation of you, O Patriarch Joseph!
This shall be my motto in life and in death. Amen.

Prayer Source: Family for Families, The by Francis L. Filas, S.J., The Bruce Publishing Company, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 1947

2. For Graces in FATHERHOOD:

We know Saint Joseph to be the spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the earthly father or also said, “Foster Father” of Jesus. He led and protected his family, the family of Nazareth during very challenging circumstances. St. Joseph was able to do this by the strength of God and by his faith.

The fathers in our own lives also face trying situations whether they be day to day or special hardships. The prayer below is intended to call on God to assist fathers and give them the graces they need.

Prayer for Graces for Fathers in Leading Families 
Father God, thank you for giving us, Saint Joseph, the greatest patron to lead our fathers — the heads of our families.

Please inspire and obtain special graces for these our fathers, great Saint, so that they may image, in some way, your greatness and virtues just as you so unselfishly lead, protected and loved the Holy Family of our Lord and God.

We especially ask for these favors for our fathers now [lay your requests before him]. Thank you for blessing our families. Amen.

Prayer Source: ConnectUs

3. For the Impossible Situations:

Saint Joseph is known to be a man of great faith. He took the “impossible situation” of his spouse, the Blessed Virgin Mary, conceiving a child by the Holy Spirit and said yes to God’s call to accept her and lead their family. St. Joseph said yes to the plan of God which I’m sure came with fear and uncertainty. This prayer to St. Joseph is for the confidence that God can take any impossible situation and bring goodness from it.

Prayer to St. Joseph:

Oh glorious St. Joseph, thou who hast power to render possible even things which are considered impossible, come to our aid in our present trouble and distress. Take this important and difficult affair under thy particular protection, that it may end happily. (Name your request.)

O dear St. Joseph, all our confidence is in thee. let it not be said that we would invoke thee in vain; and since thou art so powerful with Jesus and Mary. show that thy goodness equals thy power. Amen, St. Joseph, friend of the sacred heart, pray for us.

Prayer Source: Catholic News Agency

Our students at BVM School in Darby, PA see these themes within the culture of our Catholic grade school. We teach our elementary school students about the lives of the Saints and how we can use them as examples of how to live a Christian life. Our private school is unique for being morals and values based while committing to academic excellence.