Archdiocese prepares for consecration to St. Joseph on Dec. 8

Larry and Faith McCaghy of All Saints in Lakeville were excited to learn that the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis is seeking the special intercession and guidance of St. Joseph in the coming year, and in the next phase of its preparation for an Archdiocesan Synod.

They mentioned their enthusiasm to Deacon Gordon Bird, who ministers at All Saints and is a close friend. He shared with them a book the archdiocese is recommending to everyone at this time — “Consecration to St. Joseph: The Wonders of Our Spiritual Father,” by Father Donald Calloway, a priest of the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception.

The McCaghys, 79, have been praying with the 33-day guide every night since receiving it and they will have it completed in time for the 7 p.m., Dec. 8 Mass and consecration of the archdiocese to St. Joseph, celebrated by Archbishop Bernard Hebda at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul.

They are thinking about driving to the consecration. If not, they plan to participate in the livestream from the cathedral’s Facebook page.

Everyone in the archdiocese is invited to participate in the prayer service, either online, or in person by registering, social distancing and wearing a face covering to help prevent spread of the novel coronavirus. Registration for attendance in person is available at Cathedral of St. Paul .

Father Tom Margevicius, director of worship for the archdiocese, said the Mass, which falls on the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, when the Church celebrates that Mary was conceived without sin, will open with Archbishop Hebda reading a formal decree announcing the beginning of the Year of St. Joseph. He will also formally consecrate the archdiocese to St. Joseph and announce the inclusion of a partial indulgence for the special year.

During the Mass, the congregation and those viewing online will pray a personal prayer of consecration to St. Joseph. The Mass will end with a litany to St. Joseph and a procession of the archbishop and those gathered in the sanctuary to the Shrine of St. Joseph in the cathedral, which will be decorated for the Year of St. Joseph, Father Margevicius said.

The archdiocese also is inaugurating its Year of St. Joseph on the 150th anniversary of Blessed Pope Pius IX’s declaration of St. Joseph as the Patron of the Universal Church.

In announcing preparations for the Year of St. Joseph, Archbishop Hebda said he had heard from people around the archdiocese about Father Calloway’s guide and suggesting a Year of St. Joseph. In addition, he and the Synod Prayer Team had been contemplating placing the next step in the pre-ynod process under the patronage of St. Joseph. The first stage of preparation for the 2022 Synod was under the patronage of Mary, Mother of the Church.

Faith McCaghy said Father Calloway’s guide is inspiring and enlightening.

“It’s amazing to know how many saints and how many mystics have this knowledge of St. Joseph, and I never knew about it,” she said. After raising seven children and offering their home as a temporary home for children caught up in the judicial system, she said she wished she had known at that time to more strongly seek St. Joseph’s intercession.

“What a man, what a man,” she said of St. Joseph, citing a litany to St. Joseph in the book that includes such titles as Light of the Patriarchs, Guardian of the Virgin and Head of the Holy Family. It’s good to know, she said, that information about St. Joseph will be shared more widely as the year proceeds in the archdiocese.

In announcing the initiative, Archbishop Hebda said he hopes that the saint can unite the archdiocesan family in the Synod process.

“It gives us that opportunity for the whole archdiocese to reflect on St. Joseph’s role,” the archbishop said. “We look to him as protector and guide of the Church, as he cared for the Holy Family.”