Sleeping St Joseph!

St Joseph is an important figure because he did not want to be important! What does this mean, though? St Joseph was only interested in following God’s will in his life – and that meant taking care of Our Lady and of Jesus – and he did this quietly and without any fanfare. He was interested not in other people’s praises, but in caring for his loved ones. 

With this in mind, the image of a sleeping St Joseph is still somehow funny! It is not common to see images of a sleeping saint! We have a lot to learn from this image, however. Above all, all saints are human beings just like us: they eat, study, work, have families, and go to sleep as well! We also know, however, that God spoke to St Joseph while St Joseph was asleep (as in Matthew 1:24).

God speaks to us today, too! Most probably we will not be seeing any angels, but as with St Joseph, God speaks to us in our daily lives: at home, at school, at the church, when we are with our friends, when we play, study, work, eat and also when we sleep! The image of a sleeping St Joseph teaches us, therefore, that God can speak to us even when we are resting or even enjoying ourselves!

St Joseph teaches us, therefore, that we must always be careful to do God’s will in each and every moment of our lives. He also teaches us that at difficult times, we must never be afraid because God is with us. At times, we want to be in complete control, yet God always sees the bigger picture. We must trust in God, even if we do not always understand God’s plans. God knows!

Have you ever been so tired that you had to sleep in the arms of your mother or father? St Joseph is not afraid to sleep in the arms of God, because he knows that God loves us all. We are called to do the same. And one last thing! Do you know that Pope Francis has a small statue of a sleeping St Joseph on his desk at his office in the Vatican? The Pope knows that in times of trouble, St Joseph will help him!