# Day 8 – Consecration to Saint Joseph: “Saint Joseph, pray for us”
*2020-01-26*

> Bill Young reflects on Saint Joseph’s role as the head of the new covenant family, his unparalleled holiness, and the many saints and popes who have honored him, before leading the Litany of Saint Joseph.

## Joseph as the New Adam

We continue our eight‑day consecration to Saint Joseph. In the beginning, Adam and Eve introduced sin, but Joseph and Mary become the summit from which holiness spreads. As Pope Paul VI taught, marriage lies at the heart of creation and redemption, and Joseph, as the head of the Holy Family, is the “new Adam” who leads the new covenant family. Honoring Joseph fulfills the Fourth Commandment—our love for him is love for God.

## The Saints’ Love for Joseph

Every saint loves Saint Joseph; none are recorded as disliking him. The Church Fathers—Jerome, Augustine, Gregory of Nazianzus—praise his humility, dedication, and extraordinary holiness. Gregory even called Joseph “the most luminous of all saints.” While Mary occupies a unique category of holiness, Joseph is regarded as the holiest human after her, a distinction affirmed by many doctors of the Church.

## Joseph’s Rank in Heaven

Theologians have placed Joseph in the third place of glory after Christ and the Blessed Virgin. Pope Leo X taught that Joseph’s dignity surpasses even that of the angels. Because he is the earthly father of Jesus, his cooperation in the Incarnation required graces greater than any angel’s. Consequently, his intercession is “all‑powerful before God,” as Pope Pius X affirmed.

## Testimonies of Faith

Saint Teresa of Ávila testified to Joseph’s powerful intercession, describing numerous blessings she received through him. Earlier, Saint Lawrence of Brindisi defended Joseph’s preeminence against a misreading of Luke 7:28, explaining that John the Baptist’s greatness pertains to the old covenant, while Joseph’s fatherhood belongs to the new.

## Litany of Saint Joseph

We now pray the Litany of Saint Joseph, invoking his many titles—spouse of the Mother of God, foster‑father of the Son of God, protector of the Church, terror of demons, and more—asking for his intercession and protection.

*Saint Joseph, as the spiritual father of the Church, leads us toward the heavenly wedding feast through his exemplary love and intercession.*