MAGISTERIAL DOCUMENTS AND OTHER CHURCH DOCUMENTS ON ST JOSEPH: AN HISTORICAL SURVEY
Keywords:
Benedict XIII, Benedict XV, Benedict XVI, Clement XI, Devotion to St Joseph, Francis (Pope), Gregory XV, Innocent XI, John Paul II, John XXIII, Leo XIII, Pius IX, Pius X, Pius XI, Pius XII, Paul VI, Pope Sixtus IV, St Joseph, Second Vatican Council, Urban VIIIAbstract
The present article is an attempt to bring to light the timely interventions of the popes through the centuries, which highlight the unique role of St Joseph in the life of the Church. The author is well aware of the limitations of the presentation and the scope for further research and study in the field of Josephology. The year dedicated to St Joseph is a great challenge to all of us to develop Josephology, as we already have a well-developed Mariology, a branch in theology. Pope Sixtus IV (1471-1484) was the first Pope to introduce the Feast of St Joseph in Rome in 1479. Whenever the Church faced some critical moments in her history, the popes immediately sought the intercession of St Joseph and the protector of the infant Church of Bethlehem was there to overcome the difficult situations. From the time of Pope Pius IX till to date all popes have taken special attention to give due importance to the role of St Joseph in the life of the Church. Credit goes to Pope Leo XIII to publish an encyclical in 1889 in honour of St Joseph. Pope Francis, being a Jesuit, had the inspiration to declare a year dedicated to St Joseph.
References
Acta Sanctae Sedis, Vols. 6, 16, 22, 23.
Boniface Llamera, OP, Saint Joseph, St. Louis 2, Mo.: B. Herder Book Co., 15 & 17 South Broadway, 1962, 8–9.
Filas, Joseph: The Man Closest to Jesus, 454.
Hubert Jedin, ed., History of the Church, Volume IX, London: Burns & Oates, 1981, 265.
Karl Bihlmeyer-Hermann Tuechle, Church History, Vol. III, Paderborn: Ferdinand Schoeningh, 145.
L’Osservatore Romano, March 20 -21, 1961.
L’Osservatore Romano, March 21–22, 1938.
Ludwig von Pastor, The History of the Popes, Volume XXXII, London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd, 1957, 458-465.
Paul VI, Discourse (March 27, 1969), Insegnamenti, VII (1969), Vatican, 1269.
Pope Benedict XVI, Angelus Address, March 19, 2006, Libreria Editrice Vaticana.
Pope Francis, Apostolic Letter, Patris Corde, December 8, 2020, Libreria Editrice Vaticana.
Pope John Paul II, Familiaris Consortio, Number 86, Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1981.
Pope John Paul II, Laborem Exercens, Number 26, Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1981.
Pope John Paul II, Redemptoris Custos, Number 31, Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1989.
Quamquam Pluries, No. 3.
Some examples are Lumen Gentium, numbers 11, 58, 63, Dei Verbum, numbers 2 and 5.
von Pastor, The History of the Popes, Volume XXXIII, 344.
