Blessed Pope Pius IX declared Joseph as the Patron of the Universal Church in 1870. But what does this really mean and why would our Holy Father do such a thing? A patron is "a person chosen, named, or honored as a special guardian, protector, or supporter." [Merriam-Webster's Dictionary] Sure as our father, Joseph is a patron of ours. But there is more to it. So much more.

Joseph, as virginal father of Jesus, would be easily called a patron to Jesus. The Heavenly Father chose Joseph to guard, protect, and support His Eternal Son in a way completely unique. And if Joseph has a completely unique patronage to Jesus, he would also have a completely unique patronage to Jesus' Bride, the Church. While Joseph is individually father to each of us, he has a unique patronage to us as a whole, the Church.

Why would it take until 1870 for Joseph's patronage to be formally recognized? Simply put, it was not needed until then. Surely, Joseph still had this patronage and was able to live it out in some way, but being formally recognized as such, he could fully fulfill his patronage. After all, it is difficult to fully fulfill a father's duty when the children to not recognize their father as their father.

This ties back to "Hallowed be Thy name" from the Lord's Prayer. Only when we recognize Our Heavenly Father as Our Father, can He fully fulfill His Fatherly duties to us. And while Our Heavenly Father is infinitely superior to our father Joseph, the same still goes for Joseph. And there is no greater way to recognized Joseph's patronage than to declare it publicly for the whole Church.

This means Joseph can now fully fulfill his patronage towards us. And that is a big thing. The second greatest saint can now fulfill his patronage towards us, the holy, Catholic Church. And though he has been recognized as such for us as a whole, do we do so individually in order to allow Joseph to fully fulfill his father duties in our lives?

Joseph, I call upon you as my father to be my guardian, my protector, and my support as I strive to live as a child of the Heavenly Father, worthy of Heaven by the merits of your Son's Death on the Cross. Amen.