From the earliest days of my Catholic education, the good School Sisters of Notre Dame taught my young schoolmates and me to bow our heads when we said the name “Jesus.” 

In this year dedicated to St. Joseph, I have written several times on the way in which the Psalms can express the thinking and praying of the Holy Family. 

I like the term “guardian.”  It has an association with St. Joseph.  Frequently he receives the title “Guardian of the Lord” and “Guardian of the Holy Family.” 

In this year when Pope Francis has invited us to pay special assistance to the patriarch of the Holy Family, we have probably already heard the expression “Go to Joseph.”

One of my favorite lines in the psalms rests within Psalm 95.  The prayer starts with a wonderful summon to the people to praise.

The idea of building a house attracts me when I think of Joseph.

One can hardly imagine that Jesus could use the term “father” without some reflection on the one who had been his earthly father for most of his life, Joseph.

I would love to have people describe me as “a simple man.”

How might Joseph have prayed and meditated on Psalm 27?