"...at the moment of Joseph's own 'annunciation' he said nothing; instead he simply 'did as the angel of the Lord commanded him'. And this first 'doing' became the beginning of 'Joseph's way'. The Gospels do not record any word ever spoken by Joseph along that way. But the silence of Joseph has its own special eloquence..."

On August 15th, 1889, Pope Leo XIII promulgated the encyclical letter Quamquam Pluries on devotion to St. Joseph. 100 years later, on August 15th, 1989—and only two years after the release of his great Marian encyclical, Redemptoris Mater, "Mother of the Redeemer"—Pope St. John Paul II gave his apostolic exhortation Redemptoris Custos, "Guardian of the Redeemer", on the person and mission of St. Joseph in the life of Christ and of the Church.

"It is my heartfelt wish," St. John Paul writes, "that these reflections on the person of St. Joseph will renew in us the prayerful devotion which my Predecessor called for a century ago. Our prayers and the very person of Joseph have renewed significance for the Church in our day."

St. Joseph the Worker, Guardian of the Redeemer — pray for us!

Links

Redemptoris Custos Full text: http://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/apost_exhortations/documents/hf_jp-ii_exh_15081989_redemptoris-custos.html

Donate at: http://www.catholicculture.org/donate/audio

Theme music: 2 Part Invention, composed by Mark Christopher Brandt, performed by Thomas Mirus. ©️2019 Heart of the Lion Publishing Co./BMI. All rights reserved.