Congratulations to Greg Ingle of Mason who today consecrated himself and his wife, Heather, to Saint Joseph upon the Feast of Saint Joseph the Worker, 1 May. The couple have been married since July of last year. Greg is a civil engineer while Heather is a teacher. They say they are “hopeful that God will bless us with numerous children,” and ask for your prayers. Why, though, consecrate yourself and your family to Saint Joseph? Greg now explains:
“To be honest, at first, I was a bit timid to undergo a formal Consecration to St. Joseph. I previously consecrated myself to Jesus through the Blessed Virgin Mary and questioned how I could fully consecrate myself through multiple Saints? Consecration to Our Mother seemed obvious to me with knowledge of Her Immaculate Conception and considering that Christ offered the world to Her maternal care on Calvary. However, after completing the Consecration to St. Joseph, I now see the necessity of entrusting oneself to the Head of the Holy Family. Through God’s love of predilection, He chose Blessed Joseph to be the spouse of His Holy Mother, the father of His only begotten Son, and the model of virtue for the Faithful. I found in St. Joseph the model of a humble, chaste, benevolent, strong man who is so necessary in my own life and the Church today.”
“Consecration to St. Joseph inspired me to embrace my vocation as a man while emulating the virtues of Our Spiritual Father. As a newly married man, I feel a great desire to model my own family after the Holy Family. I have grown up thinking of Mary and Jesus as Mother and Son, but I now realize the role of St. Joseph as the Head of the Holy Family. St. Joseph has revealed the self-sacrificial love that made the bond between him and Mary so strong. The humility of St. Joseph allowed him to die to himself and glorify Jesus and Mary. St. Joseph was the pedestal to let Jesus rise and Mary shine. I am convicted that I must cultivate these relationships within my family, to defend the dignity and holiness of my wife and patiently inspire my future children.
"Just as I have received many traits and mannerisms from my own paternal father, I believe that we can see the qualities of St. Joseph when we look at the life of Christ. The call to the Faithful is to conform our lives to the life of Christ. In doing so, we are indirectly conforming our lives to St. Joseph, the man who influenced the humanity of the Savior. I seek to be the apprentice of St. Joseph in all things. Learning from him as a chaste spouse, patient father, humble craftsman, and faithful follower of God.” Saint Joseph, pray for us!