Saint Joseph: Guardian, Worker, Saint
By Caleb Brown and Connor Mortell
Saint Joseph the Silent Guardian: A Scriptural Reflection
By Caleb Brown
Today is the feast of Saint Joseph the Worker—the foster father of the Son of God, spouse of the Mother of God, chaste guardian of the Virgin, model of workmen, pillar of families, watchful defender of Christ, and the terror of demons.
As you can see, Saint Joseph is a saint of many titles. And I know what you may be thinking, dear reader: “How can a man mentioned only fourteen or so times have that many titles?” Fear not. In this essay, we’ll walk through some of these names together and see what holiness, grace, and model of Christian virtue the foster father of God offers us.
Before we begin our study, a brief note on method. I will limit myself to what is revealed in Scripture. While I fully believe in the truth and value of the pious traditions handed down to us—the dreams, miracles, and visions associated with Saint Joseph—incorporating all of them would lengthen this essay beyond the bounds of a single sitting. For now, we’ll remain within the inspired text, trusting that even in these few verses, much can be learned. Second, I will not be presenting his titles in any particular order. Do not infer from the sequence any hierarchy or ranking. Each title reveals a different facet of the same man—equal aspects of a saint whose greatness lies in his quiet fulfillment of many roles.
1. Foster Father of the Son of God
This one is pretty straightforward: Saint Joseph, being married to Our Lady, was the foster father of Jesus. But while the fact may be simple, let us consider how monumental a responsibility God entrusted to Saint Joseph—to raise, care for, teach, and protect the Savior of the world. Let us not forget that our Lord labored as a carpenter for years before beginning His earthly ministry; He learned from and worked alongside Saint Joseph. Not only did God entrust Saint Joseph with this responsibility; Saint Joseph humbly accepted it. The moment God’s will was revealed to him by the angel, he obeyed without hesitation. Joseph’s fatherhood was not one of biology, but of obedience and love. In this, he becomes a mirror of the Heavenly Father, showing us that fatherhood is defined not by flesh, but by faithfulness.
2. Spouse of the Mother of God
Again, pretty straightforward. But let us examine it more closely to see what lessons we can draw from this most honorable title. Our Lady is a perpetual virgin¹—meaning Saint Joseph was a chaste spouse. Their marriage was one formed by God when He entrusted them with His divine Son. Some may argue that if Saint Joseph was chaste, and Mary was a perpetual virgin, then their marriage was never consummated. But that misses the richer and deeper point: Saint Joseph and Our Lady were bound together by God through the angelic command in Saint Joseph’s dream (Matthew 1:20). It was through Saint Joseph that our Lord became a descendant of King David, so that He could claim His royal inheritance to fulfill the Davidic covenant.
3. Chaste Guardian of Mary
As I have already discussed the chaste nature of Saint Joseph’s marriage to Our Lady, I will not repeat myself. Rather, I will focus on the role he played as guardian to Mary. We see in Sacred Scripture: “And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to send her away quietly” (Matthew 1:19). This occurred before the angel of God appeared to him in a dream. From his perspective, his betrothed was pregnant with another man’s child. And yet, rather than abandoning her or making her shame known, he chose to send her away quietly. Even before he knew that no wrong had been done—and indeed, that the greatest good had been done—he protected Our Lady.
4. Model of Workmen
Our Lord was a carpenter like His father. I could cite the relevant texts, but I think it’s more fitting to ask this question: Why did our Savior labor? Because when God became man, He entered into our life and sanctified the things we do. Where once labor was the punishment of Adam, our Lord sanctified it. He entered into our punishment and transformed it into an act that glorifies God—whether through suffering offered up, or through participation in God’s creative act by making something new. And our Lord did all this under the guidance of a just and honorable worker: Saint Joseph, the model of workmen.
5. Pillar of Families
Saint Joseph is the patriarch of the Holy Family. He fulfilled the role of protector, provider, and spiritual father. We read in Luke 2:39–40: “And when they had performed everything according to the law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own city, Nazareth. And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon Him.” One cannot grow to be strong without being fed and protected. We can glean from this passage the important role Saint Joseph had in fostering the environment necessary for the growth of our Lord.
6. Watchful Defender of Christ
We see in Matthew 2:13–15: “Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Rise, take the child and His mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy Him.’ And he rose and took the child and His mother by night and departed to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, ‘Out of Egypt have I called My Son.’”
What we see in these verses is Saint Joseph’s immediate action to gather his family and flee to safety. Now, from Bethlehem to the Egyptian border is about 65 to 100 miles, but the commonly believed destination was Cairo—about 300 to 400 miles away. It was undoubtedly hostile terrain, fraught with both natural and human dangers. And Saint Joseph was there to protect and defend Our Lady and the infant Savior.
I wish to highlight. that an Angel never appeared to Saint Joseph directly in waking life—it was always in a dream. What faith and trust he must have had in God, to rise in the middle of the night and lead his family into the wilderness based solely on a dream.
The recently departed Pope Francis once said:
“We, too, are called to ‘get up’ when the Lord calls us to do something.”
He also asked Saint Joseph to help us dream, for “when we dream, we draw near to God’s dream—what God dreams about us.”
Conclusion
In conclusion, what we find in the life of Saint Joseph is a man full of faith and trust in God—a hard and just worker, a faithful pillar of the Holy Family, and the defender of our Lord and Our Lady. We see example, inspiration, and wisdom. Every man is called to be a father, physical or spiritual, and no matter which one you are—or which one you become—we as men can all find guidance and support in the life and faith of this saint.
Prayer to Saint Joseph
Hail, Guardian of the Redeemer,
Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
To you, God entrusted His only Son;
In you, Mary placed her trust;
With you, Christ became man.
Blessed Joseph, to us, too,
show yourself a father
and guide us in the path of life.
Obtain for us grace, mercy, and courage,
and defend us from every evil. Amen.
¹ Protestants die mad (Footnote 1)
Saint Joseph the Worker by Connor Mortell
The rising sun calls out, and so do I,
Ora et labora—hands to prayer and wood.
The noonday burns, then fades across the sky,
Lord, grant me rest and end it when You would.
Again the dawn; I rise, and kiss her cheek,
I build not for myself, but for her bread.
The shadows lengthen, soft along the peak,
She prays for me: both now and when I'm dead.
Once more the sun ascends; the child and I
Set out with tools, his skill outshining mine.
We turn for home beneath a twilight sky,
"Remember this," I say, "when grief is thine."
At last, I sleep—no waking bell to ring.
The sun stays high, and night forgets to cling.