IWKnights Corner For March 21, 2021
(5th Sunday In Lent)

Did you know this about the IW Knights of Columbus?

St Joseph's feast day was celebrated on March 19th.  Last December Pope Francis proclaimed 2021 as the "Year of St. Joseph."  This week we will begin a two part article - published in the K of C's  Columbia on-line magazine - entitled "The Chivalry of St. Joseph" by Tracey Rowland . . .

"St Joseph the third panel of the Mérode altarpiece, a 15th-century triptych also known as Annunciation with St. Joseph and Donors, St. Joseph is busy building a mousetrap. This is probably a reference to St. Augustine’s metaphor of the cross as a mousetrap set for the devil.  St. Joseph is therefore doing his bit as guardian of the nascent Church by helping to construct a trap for the devil.

In this and many other depictions of the domestic life of the Holy Family, St. Joseph is portrayed as a man who “sorts” problems in a practical way.  He finds solutions by being both brave and prudent.  He had to preserve Our Lady’s dignity when she was found to be with child before their marriage.  He had to get his family to safety when Herod’s henchmen slaughtered the Holy Innocents.  Like the medieval Christian knights who later made arduous journeys to protect pilgrims and sacred places in the Holy Land, St. Joseph had to face danger and deal with it.

'In St. Joseph, justice is combined with tenderness, strength and decisiveness with flexibility and openness to the will of God,' said the late Catholic writer Stratford Caldecott in a 2002 address. 'He is an adventurer, too, like the ‘questing knights’ of later legend.'

Quoting the French poet Charles Péguy, Caldecott added:'There is only one adventurer in the world, as can be seen very clearly in the modern world — the father of a family. Even the most desperate adventurers are nothing compared to him.'

Father Jean-Jacques Olier, who founded the Society of St. Sulpice in the 17th century, argued that St. Joseph is unique among the saints because of the mysterious bond that exists between him and God the Father.  A multitude of saints have represented Christ in this or that aspect of their heroism, but only St. Joseph, among all the saints, has a special vocation to represent God the Father."

Also, find more about the Knights of Columbus at  IWKnights9981.com/bulletin or in facebook.com/IWknights9981 and NOW on Twitter at twitter.com/IwKnights.

Links Related to this week’s column:

THE CHIVALRY OF ST. JOSEPH
	Today more than ever, the Church needs the noble strength and practical wisdom of the patron saint of fathers.. . .
		By Tracey Rowland (3/1/2021)
			Click here for Poll

Prayer for Protection in Time of Pandemic
	A Novena which seeks Our Lady’s Intercession for Protection in Time of Pandemic
		By His Holiness, Pope Francis (3/2020)
		A PRAYER FOR PROTECTION IN TIME OF PANDEMIC (PDF Version)
				Click here for the Prayer