Last year, I started educating myself about Saint Joseph by going to sites that explained who he was in the life of Jesus and Mary. I planned on getting my hands on the consecration book to Saint Joseph last year since the year 2021 marked the year when Pope Francis proclaimed it the "Year of Saint Joseph." For some reason though, I ended up not doing it. By no means that I am implying that I had lost my interest because it remained in me.
This year, that idea popped up again when I saw the book sitting in my saved list on the Amazon website. I caved this time. I thought it made so much sense to do it this year that Calvin is gearing up for college. So there, I put it in my cart. Just a couple of days later, I would say, it arrived. However, though the timing was great, it posed a few challenges for us. How so, you might ask?
Well, we began the 33-day required reading on July 11th. I was aware that Calvin's college orientation falls within the thirty-three days that we are making the family consecration to the care of Jesus' foster father.
Thirty-three days! Too many days, you might say, but there is a good reason for that. The book explains it very well. I strongly suggest that you pick up your copy because you will learn a ton of information about this great Saint.
This book lived up to its description “A book within a book” as how Father Calloway put it into context. I think the ten days out of the thirty-three days consisted of pages upon pages, almost a chapter-long in length in a short novel. It was all necessary though, don’t let it discourage you because as you flip the pages, your admiration, appreciation, and respect for Saint Joseph will be amplified. You will see how easy it is to fall in love with him, and to see him as our spiritual foster father, too.
So there, Chico State orientation day came. Yes, it was a tiring day, and honestly, I had to amass the stamina warranted for the reading plan so I can have the attention span that will last me throughout the reading session. It is a long read. I think it was one of the ten long chapters. Very substantial. Anyway, I am proud to say though that we persisted that night. We did the required reading in our hotel room.
And then came our summer trip to Southern California. The daily activities, a lot of walking in the scorching summer heat, and traffic that made the driving a challenge were all good reasons to be completely washed out at the end of each day. One night, I fell asleep before we even started the reading, but by God's grace, our family made it. I commend my husband for sticking to it when I could not. In fact, he shared with me the topic covered for the previous day the next morning, so in essence, I did not miss out. Awesome! He was happy to learn more about the Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph. So much of the things that had no prior knowledge.
Cutting to the chase, we finished the book without skipping a day. We did it! So here now is where the awe-inspiring part comes in.
Father Calloway, the author of "Consecration to Saint Joseph," a Marianist priest, suggested visiting a St. Joseph Church after making the consecration. In the book, he mentioned a few prominent St. Joseph churches, but all are a far distance from our location. It didn't look possible at the moment to travel to one of the mentioned churches.
I understood the significance, so I Googled churches in his namesake, hoping there was one closest to us. I know that St. Joseph would be just as delighted. Would you agree? I thought so!
Lo and behold!—there was one in Alameda! A basilica minor even! And yes, just about a 45-minute drive away! I visited their website to get more details, like their Mass times. My, and was I thrilled. Here is why—the said basilica minor was to commemorate its 50th anniversary on August 17th since the granting of its basilica minor designation. Unbelievable! So I learned that this basilica is an old church, but we didn't even know it existed, yet we lived in Hayward— just some 20 miles away, over two decades ago.
Naturally, we didn't hesitate. So, on August 17th, we drove to Alameda for the 7 PM Mass intended for the church's golden anniversary.
But here's what baffled us, including the others present there that we met after the Mass—I never had prior knowledge of Fr. Calloway's mentioning of visiting a St. Joseph parish. It was just after we finished the 33rd day.
The chance to see a basilica minor in his namesake and even happening on its 50th anniversary just days after completing the required reading was such an eventful window of opportunity for us. One of the parishioners even commented, "I'm having goosebumps!"
Yes, God was behind it all. It goes to show how special St. Joseph is to God. Amen.
There were refreshments served at the orchard after the Mass. We thought that we should stay and were glad that we did because the priest in residence, Fr. Sunil Orathel, was very accommodating to us—walking to us a few times to converse, and he even brought us wine to drink! We met some of the parishioners there because he introduced us to them. My, my, my...! It was a night of oodles of fun!
And, the parishioners we met? They probably were in the hospitality ministry, if that was a thing in that parish because it was so easy to feel at home.
I, for the most part, was ecstatic that we got to do the consecration to St. Joseph and for God sealing it with a significant Mass at a St. Joseph Basilica Minor. And, for all these, before our younger son heads off to Chico. Most of all, for realizing that it made all sense to make the consecration this year rather than last year because the timing was perfect for the 50th anniversary of the basilica minor. Priceless!
Now is your turn to share your stories ingrained with a heavenly touch. Shoot me a message, I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Many blessings!
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