Pope Francis's Rising St. Joseph Statue

“The Holy Father really makes St. Joseph work. Francis’ devotion to Jesus’ adoptive father has spread to all those who work in and around the Pope’s residence, including the Swiss Guards…” Francis has a great devotion for St. Joseph and even keeps a statuette of the saint in a marble-topped dark wooden chest of drawers just outside his room (Room 201) in St. Martha’s House. The Pope slips prayer requests he has written under the pedestal and as the pieces of paper grow in number – “the Holy Father really makes the saint work” - the statuette slowly rises.

Today, 1 May, is the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker and so it is the right occasion to write about a devotion which has accompanied Pope Francis since his childhood days. The parish of Flores, the Buenos Aires neighbourhood where Francis was born and grew up, is dedicated to San José. It was in this church, dedicated to Jesus’ adoptive father, that Bergoglio attended mass and had his earliest Christian experiences. It was in this parish and under St. Joseph’s protection that on 21 September 1953, Bergoglio met Fr. Carlos B. Duarte Ibarra at the age of (almost) 17. After going to him for confession, he discovered his priestly vocation. Francis’ pontificate is also under St. Joseph’s protection, having been solemnly inaugurated on 19 March 2013.