Saint Joseph, patron of all fathers
Yesterday, March 19, was the feast day of Saint Joseph, spouse to Mary, foster father to Jesus. My wife and I were lucky, and hopefully blessed, to have attended the 6 a.m. Mass of Fr. Randy Raagas at the Saint Francis of Assisi Church in Jugaban, Carigara, Leyte. As it turned out, it was to be the last public Mass to be held in the whole Archdiocese of Palo, to which it belongs, for the duration of this coronavirus crisis we are facing.
And indeed it was propitious that this last Mass should fall on the feast day of Saint Joseph, the patron of all fathers and, as I learned from Fr. Randy in his homily, the protector of the Church. For to me, at no time has the Church needed more protection than now. To me, the Church is in retreat. I feel very uncomfortable about this suspension of Masses ordered by higher Church officials in view of the COVID-19 threat
I understand fully the need for prudence and caution at this time. I appreciate the tremendous obligations everyone must face and fulfill as we try to overcome this challenge. But I also believe that at no time has our faith been tested more severely and realistically than at this very moment when our own lives are on the line.
As a Catholic, I am deeply conflicted in my faith to invoke God in prayer only to be told that, in the meantime let us not gather in his name in his house because of the coronavirus. What happens to the meaning of "I believe in God the Father Almighty..." when at the end of prayer we are being spooked by our mortal fears?
I don’t know anymore the answer to my own question. And as a law-abiding citizen, I know I have to comply with regulations. I just wish the Church had been a little stronger in its own faith. To me public Masses should not have been suspended in keeping with our faith that in God rests everything. This would have allowed those who want to keep the faith the opportunity to hear Mass. Those who feel it safer to keep away can keep away.
To me the suspension of Masses is in conflict with all that we believe in about God being in charge of our lives. At the end of one popular prayer, we say “Jesus, we trust in you." But do we really when we have to suspend Masses because of the coronavirus? If we truly believe, we need to accept the fact that only God knows when everybody's time is up. And when it is, not all the Mass suspensions in the world can stop the will of God.
But then, there it is. No more public Masses. The bishops have spoken. What a sad day to hear the announcement on the feast day of Saint Joseph. But perhaps it is just in keeping with the place all fathers must keep, sometimes misunderstood, sometimes unappreciated, very often just in the background. Among saints, he is not really up there when in fact he should be there right next to Mary.
Anyway, as the patron of all fathers and protector of the Church, may Saint Joseph stand beside all the fathers in the world who, in these times, must be consumed with concern and anxiety as their families, their wives, sons, and daughters face uncertainties pertaining to their safety and health. Fathers everywhere will try not to show it, but they are being eaten alive with worry for their loved ones. Saint Joseph, pray for these fathers.
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