March is the Month of Saint Joseph, Part 2

A new feature we recently started is monthly homeschool activities (see topic to the right>>>).  In Part 1, our reader Jenna gave some ideas on how to observe the monthly devotions, so we will use some of those…

Homeschool Activities for March

1. Can you find a 9-day novena to Saint Joseph?  Do you think you can pray it this month or sometime during Lent?  Try to get all 9 days in a row!  (Mothers, you might want to abbreviate the prayers for young children.)

2. Write a short prayer to Saint Joseph and memorize it.

3. Which feast in honor of Mary do we celebrate this month?  Where is this account found in Holy Scripture?

For more information on traditional monthly dedications, see the link below from Catholic Online.  History and indulgences are discussed.  Below is an excerpt of the month of March…

Special Devotions for Months

“St. Joseph (feast, 19 March); indulgences, three hundred days daily for those who privately or publicly perform some pious practice in honour of St. Joseph, during the month, a plenary indulgence on any day of the month under the usual conditions ( Pius IX, "Rescript Congr. Indulg.", 27 April, 1865). This month of devotions may commence in February and be concluded 19 March ( Pius IX, 18 July, 1877). March can be replaced by another month in case of legitimate impediment (Raccolta, 404). The practice of a triduum [A time frequently chosen for prayer or for other devout practices, whether by individuals in private, or in public by congregations or special organizations in parishes, in religious communities, seminaries, or schools. The form of prayer or devotion depends upon the occasion or purpose of the triduum. The three days usually precede some feast, and the feast then determines the choice of the pious exercises.] before the feast of St. Joseph has been recommended by Leo XIII (Encycl. "Quamquam pluries", 15 August, 1889).”

And here is a post from June, 2016…we now have a full 10 years of posts here…

A New Prayer to Saint Joseph!

March is the Month of Saint Joseph, Part 1

This year, March comes in with Septuagesima and goes out with the 5th week of Lent.  Yes, Easter is late this year, on April 20th.  Easter may be celebrated from March 22nd to April 25th.  Have a look at the (Old Farmer’s) Almanac page below for an explanation of how the date of Easter is determined, including potential complications and the “Golden Number” method.  This article is chock-full of interesting facts and links.  I support the Almanac for their great work in gardening and traditional ideas, and also their respect for the Catholic Church.  They are an invaluable resource.  You can even type in your zip code and get the seasonal planting schedule for your area.  It’s about 15 pages, but well-worth printing.

Almanac:  When is Easter?  Why it Falls so Late in 2025

Also, the above article gives us an idea on one thing we can do to celebrate a holy Lent!  The 7 Penitential Psalms…

“In the sixth century, Christians who had committed grave faults were obliged to do public penance. On Ash Wednesday, they donned a hair shirt (which they wore for 40 days), and the local bishop blessed them and sprinkled them with ashes. Then, while others recited the Seven Penitential Psalms, the penitents were turned out of the holy place. They could not enter the church again until Maundy Thursday…when they received absolution.”

Here they are, along with the Songs of the Suffering Servant, from Isaiah, which are also customary to recite during Lent:

USCCB:  The Seven Penitential Psalms and the Songs of the Suffering Servant

Traditionally during Lent, meat was only eaten at one meal per day and no meat was eaten on Holy Saturday.  Obviously, we refrain from meat every Friday and there is fasting and abstinence on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.  Some also recite the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Holy Rosary each day in Lent.

The Spring Equinox is March 20th.  Since we are preppers here, it is time to start thinking about our gardening.  If you have never gardened or are rusty at it, the Almanac above is fabulous for getting started.  Don’t worry if you can’t get it together for a Spring garden, Summer is a fine time to plant.   How about making that a goal?  Food resilience is becoming more and more important, as food supply and farmers are undergoing attack throughout the world.  Growing your own food is really just a normal part of being human, like my Sicilian-born grandmother did in a tiny yard in Brooklyn, New York.  My father carried on her example at our home in Levittown, growing tomatoes in the backyard and eggplant on the front lawn!  It’s a wonderful thing to teach our children and they have a natural love for it.  The miracle of watching a seed grow into a beautiful plant that you can eat, is endlessly enthralling and gives you an appreciation for God’s creation.  Maybe that’s one reason why the forces of evil do not want us growing food.  Faith is a threat to their New World Order (remember when garden centers were considered “unessential” during Covid?).

Here are some notable feasts of this month, including the Ember Days of Lent.  These present a further opportunity for penance and prayer.  The traditional Mass readings are quite inspiring.  You can also get creative with these Ember Days which harken to the season of Spring, with nature-themed activities and crafts with children.  Take note of the Annunciation, 9 months before Christmas, and Laetare Sunday, like Gaudete Sunday in Advent, when we are reminded of joy in the midst of penance, and the vestments are rose-colored…

2nd-Quinquagesima Sunday

4th-Shrove Tuesday

5th-Ash Wednesday

6th-Saints Perpetua & Felicity

7th-Saint Thomas Aquinas, Perpetua & Felicity (new)

12th-Ember Wednesday

14th-Ember Friday

15th-Ember Saturday

17th-Saint Patrick

19th-Saint Joseph

21st-Saint Benedict

24th-Saint Gabriel the Archangel

25th-ANNUNCIATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

30th-Laetare Sunday

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Month of Saint Joseph, Foster-Father of Our Lord

In this month dedicated to Saint Joseph, his feast is celebrated March 19th.  There are so many ways to honor him and show our love for this most faithful intercessor.  Here is a printable PDF of the “Thirty Days Prayer:”

THIRTY DAYS PRAYER TO SAINT JOSEPH

In Honor of the 30 Years Spent with Jesus & Mary

Below are some thoughts by one of our readers, regarding the monthly Catholic themes.  I love the idea of writing your own prayer-what a great activity for children!

“For me, monthly devotions help to build a greater understanding and deeper relationship with the Lord and His Church.  You can bring it naturally into the monthly cycle and feel a little more God-centered.  Some suggestions:

• Read up on the subject of the month’s devotion.

• Form an understanding of why the devotion is important.

• How does the devotion impact your life?

• Is there a feast day?

• Research a monthly Marian connection.

• Choose a nine-day novena that brings you closer to the devotion.

• Read about the Saints who were part of or partial to the devotion.

• Compose your own prayer.

It doesn’t take long and you are taking time to spend with the Lord and the Faith.”

Jenna, New York

Thank you, Jenna!  We welcome feedback from readers and may post your comments.  Wishing you all a most holy and blessed Lent:)

March is the Month of Saint Joseph

What better time than March, the Month of Saint Joseph, to recite the beautiful “Thirty Days Prayer to Saint Joseph?”  What better time than this March?  What better time than today?  This can be the way you honor the Foster-Father of Our Blessed Lord during his month, a Lenten exercise and an opportunity to lift up our intentions at this critical point in time.  This prayer states, “My sins have drawn down on me the just displeasure of my God, and so I am surrounded with unhappiness.”  This goes for the whole world.  Sin is the reason why it is all happening and it is now pay-up time.  We all knew something had to break eventually because of the trajectory we were on.  Well, look around.  It’s breaking and time is short. 

There is another more lengthy 30-day devotion called “The Holy Cloak of Saint Joseph.”  Here is the PDF printable of the prayer mentioned above…

THIRTY DAYS PRAYER TO SAINT JOSEPH ~ PDF Printable

IN HONOR OF THE 30 YEARS SPENT WITH JESUS AND MARY

Saint Joseph’s feast on the 19th is also the date of the Spring Equinox this year.  As preppers, Spring is one of the most exciting times of year!  But often it seems to come too fast, so now is the time to plant your indoor seedlings (if that applies to your climate) and get that garden ready.  If you haven’t gardened before but want to get started, there are so many resources available (try The Old Farmer’s Almanac, which is now offering a free “Beginner’s Guide to Gardening”).  90% of the battle is getting started.  So maybe you could make that a Lenten goal while there are still 4 weeks left of Lent?  Preparing and taking care of your family is certainly a noble endeavor.  It is actually like a Corporal work of Mercy.  And hopefully, at that difficult time in the coming days, you will have so much abundance, that you will be able to help others around you as well.  Saint Isidore the Farmer, whose feast we celebrate on the 22nd, will be proud of you! 

March ends with the solemn Easter Triduum and the 31st is Easter, the Solemnity of Solemnities.  We celebrate the glorious Resurrection of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, only 9 days before the “X Marks the Spot Solar Eclipse” over North America (which some say is a prophetic sign of God’s wrath upon us).  Wow, precisely enough time to pray a novena (and also perform the First Saturdays Devotion on April 6th)!  If you are on our email list or have been following the blog, you already know about our…

Eclipse Pilgrimage of Mercy

This gets even more interesting.  The week of the eclipse is April 7th-13th, Sunday to Saturday.   April 7th is the feast of the Divine Mercy and April 8th, the day of the eclipse, is the Annunciation.  We have added the Chaplet of Divine Mercy from Easter Sunday to April 8th, to the Pilgrimage format.  During the week of the eclipse, the suggestion is to visit a holy Catholic place, such as a shrine, cathedral, etc, and pray the Rosary for mercy.  If this is too difficult, any church will do.  More details to follow.

Here are some notable feasts of March…. 

1st-First Friday of the Sacred Heart

2nd-First Saturday of the Immaculate Heart

3rd-Saint Katherine Drexel, 20th Century Saint

6th-Saints Felicitas & Perpetua, Martyrs

7th-Saint Thomas Aquinas

12th-Pope Saint Gregory the Great

17th-Passion Sunday / Saint Patrick

19th-SAINT JOSEPH

22nd-Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary / Saint Isidore the Farmer

24th-Palm Sunday / Saint Gabriel Archangel

28th-Holy Thursday

29th-GOOD FRIDAY (fast & abstinence)

30th-HOLY SATURDAY / EASTER VIGIL

31st-EASTER SUNDAY 

Traditional Calendar for March 

We discuss both trad and new feasts.

Feast of Saint Joseph

Saint Joseph, Pray For Us!

“Saint Joseph Terror of Demons” by Bernadette Carstensen

From the outset of today’s Tridentine Mass, the praise of the Foster-Father of our Redeemer:

The just shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow up like the cedar of Libanus: planted in the house of the Lord, in the courts of the house of our God…

Beloved of God and men, whose memory is in benediction. He made him like the Saints in glory, and magnified him in the fear of his enemies, and with his words he made prodigies to cease. He glorified him in the sight of kings, and gave him commandments in the sight of his people, and showed him His glory. He sanctified him in his faith and meekness, and chose him out of all flesh. For He heard him and his voice, and brought him into a cloud. And He gave him commandment before His face, and a law of life and instruction.

“What the Year of St. Joseph Means and How to Gain the Indulgences”

The above article is from Denver Catholic, and lists the 6 ways to obtain the plenary indulgence in this “Year of Saint Joseph.” There are actually 7 ways, if you include the “Consecration to Saint Joseph,” which the article also discusses. Today is the perfect day to perform one of these (you will also be required to meet the usual conditions). Keep these devotions in mind for the remainder of this Month of Saint Joseph, and as a Lenten exercise. Also, keep them in mind on the May 1st Feast of Saint Joseph the Worker. What a great family activity as well-it is these things which will make our children love the Holy Catholic Faith and want to hold on to it!

Bernadette Carstensen Illustration

Video Interview

When looking for images for my posts, I always look for something that jumps out among the rest. The image above did just that. I have never seen a depiction of Saint Joseph like this before…the stern expression and the raising of his arm, as if to exclaim, “Vade Retro Satana!”…protecting the innocent Child Jesus.

It is a copyrighted image, so I have just given you a snippet of this remarkable painting. To view the entirety, please see the link above. This image is also incorporated into a separate painting, which is on the same page. Needless to say, the artist, also known as Bernadette Carstensen-Cody, possesses a rare and exquisite talent. She is a young woman from San Francisco-please also view the 12-minute video interview with her, which features many of her other works. The above painting can be purchased at her site for a reasonable fee-what an awesome Fathers Day gift and addition to your home in this “Year of Saint Joseph!”

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Nomen Christi Apostolate Prayer to Saint Joseph*

O Saint Joseph

O Saint Joseph, Guardian of Our Lord and Our Lady, intercede for us before the Divine Majesty. O holy and humble carpenter, pray for God's children in all our great need. We pray this in the Name of the Christ Child, once held in your loving arms. Amen.

Saint Joseph Novena

Glorious St. Joseph, spouse of the Immaculate Virgin, Foster-Father of Jesus Christ, obtain for me a pure, humble and charitable mind, and perfect resignation to the Divine Will. Be my guide, my father and my model through life, that I may merit to die as you did in the arms of Jesus and Mary. Loving St. Joseph, faithful follower of Jesus Christ, I raise my heart to you to implore your powerful intercession in obtaining from the Heart of Jesus all the graces necessary for my spiritual and temporal welfare, particularly the grace of a happy death and the special grace I now implore: (mention your request). Guardian of the Word Incarnate, I am confident that your prayers on my behalf will be graciously heard before the Throne of God.

Our Father + Hail Mary + Glory Be

(Recite for 9 consecutive days)

* I wrote this prayer several years ago and posted it on this blog. I was going for the “Hail Mary” of Saint Joseph, something that could be easily memorized. The “Name of the Christ Child” is invoked, as this ministry has a special devotion to the Holy Name (Nomen Christi). Please feel free to share this prayer with others.