Behold: St. Joseph Our Protector

In week two of Behold, Sr. Miriam James Heidland, SOLT, reflects on St. Joseph as our protector, the role of fathers, and our own human fathers.

Sr. Miriam shares a quote from Through the Heart of St. Joseph by Fr. Boniface Hicks, OSB:

As we place ourselves in the position of Jesus in St. Joseph’s arms, we can learn the greatest experience of fatherhood. We learn from St. Joseph what it means to be unconditionally loved. It is an invitation to be little and childlike. When we take the risk of being vulnerable, like a child, we get a taste of divine love and we experience a father’s tenderness for his son.

St. Joseph exemplifies the gift of masculinity. He was a strong, steadfast, and righteous man who lived in honesty and honor. In humility and awe, he was the protector of Mary and Jesus.

You may see your own father reflected in the life of St. Joseph or you may deeply yearn for a father (or father figure) who is more like St. Joseph. Sr. Miriam encourages you to acknowledge the pain in your heart for your father and to pray that the Lord will bless him and bring you into deeper healing with him.

Spending time with the Holy Family in prayer allowed Sr. Miriam to experience profound healing and restoration in her own heart. The Holy Family’s unconditional love reminds her of the love of God the Father. Even when our human fathers may not be present or affirming in our lives, the Lord is here and ready to tell us, “I love you and I am so proud of you.”