With a Father's Heart

In his Apostolic Letter to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the proclamation of St Joseph as Patron of the Universal Church, Pope Francis described how St Joseph loved Jesus: patris corde, with a father's heart. The Holy Father then focused on four aspects of this great saint's fatherhood: 1) a beloved father, 2) a tender and loving father, 3) an obedient father, 4) an accepting father, and 5) a father in the shadows.
Since the beginning of his pontificate, Pope Francis has given us the impression of his closeness to St Joseph. In his inaugural Mass (19 March 2013), he recognized St Joseph as a protector - first, of Jesus and Mary, and second, of the Church. He said, "Today, together with the feast of Saint Joseph, we are celebrating the beginning of the ministry of the new Bishop of Rome, the Successor of Peter, which also involves a certain power...Let us never forget that authentic power is service, and that the Pope too, when exercising power, must enter ever more fully into that service which has its radiant culmination on the Cross. He must be inspired by the lowly, concrete and faithful service which marked Saint Joseph and, like him, he must open his arms to protect all of God’s people and embrace with tender affection the whole of humanity, especially the poorest, the weakest, the least important...Only those who serve with love are able to protect!"
On 1 May 2013, St Joseph's name was inserted in Eucharistic Prayers 2, 3, and 4. Before that, his name was only mentioned in Eucharistic Prayer 1 (a.k.a. Roman Canon) during the pontificate of Pope John XXIII. The decree Paternas Vices explains "(St Joseph) stands as an exemplary model of the kindness and humility that the Christian faith raises to a great destiny, and demonstrates the ordinary and simple virtues necessary for men to be good and genuine followers of Christ. Through these virtues, this Just man, caring most lovingly for the Mother of God and happily dedicating himself to the upbringing of Jesus Christ, was placed as guardian over God the Father's most precious treasures." 
On a more personal level, the Pope has a statue of the Sleeping St Joseph on his desk, a practice he has for decades. During his papal visit to the Philippines in 2015, he told people “Even when he is asleep, he is taking care of the church! Yes! We know that he can do that. So when I have a problem, a difficulty, I write a little note and I put it underneath St. Joseph, so that he can dream about it! In other words I tell him: Pray for this problem!...Do not forget St. Joseph who sleeps! Jesus slept with the protection of Joseph.”
Apart from these proclamations and devotion, Pope Francis has led a life of service inspired by the humble carpenter of Nazareth: he lives not in the papal apartment, but in the hostel of Santa Marta; he reaches out to all peoples regardless of race, culture, creed, etc; he has been instigating reforms in the Church. Of course, there are still issues and challenges that the Church has to face and the Pope cannot do this on his own. He needs our support through prayers and works of mercy and justice.
By proclaiming the Year of St Joseph, the Pope seems to be putting the Church into the direction of paternal care, humble service, wise discernment, and generous obedience - qualities of the Church's Universal Patron. By proclaiming this holy year, the Church - once exposed to the malaria of being judgmental, exclusive, and legalistic - is given a breath of fresh air from the gentleness of Joseph.
Pope Francis wrote in Patris Corde,  "[I]n every exercise of our fatherhood, we should always keep in mind that it has nothing to do with possession, but is rather a “sign” pointing to a greater fatherhood. In a way, we are all like Joseph: a shadow of the heavenly Father, who “makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust” (Mt 5:45). And a shadow that follows his Son."
Indeed, we too are called to be another Joseph in our times. As we celebrate the Year of St Joseph, let us ask his help so that God would transform our hearts to be like that of St Joseph. Each one of us exercise a 'fatherhood' in our lives. This is the perfect time to be aware of and celebrate that - through how we care for our own families, our communities, our workplaces, our Church, our world.
A blessed Year of St Joseph!

New Year's Resolutions

As the Church ushers in a new liturgical year, it is worth noting two events that have challenged and perhaps brought it to knees. The first was Covid-19. The pandemic has prevented churches from holding public celebration of the sacraments. For a religious country such as the Philippines, this experience was last observed during World War II. And yet, it is heartwarming to observe how creative parishes, shrines, cathedrals, and other places of worship have been through livestreaming of Masses and the outreach programme to those badly affected by the lockdown.
The second was the "Report on the Holy See's Institutional Knowledge and Decision-Making Related to Former Cardinal Theodore Edgar McCarrick (1930-2017). As promised by Pope Francis two years ago, this report aimed at shedding light on how the Catholic Church handled the case of this American churchman who was involved in sexual abuse. The report has exposed how politicized the Church is when it protected one of its hierarchs and dismissed the cries of sexual abuse victims. St John Paul II was not even spared in the report. When Mr McCarrick was rumored to be appointed Archbishop of Washington, Cardinal John O'Connor of New York wrote to the Pope to discourage him from doing so due to allegations of sexual abuse. Despite such alarm bells from a top honcho in the American Church, the Pope did not listen and believed more McCarrick's protestations. Eventually, McCarrick became Archbishop and then later a Cardinal. This was the same pope who praised Maciel Degollado, priest-founder of Legion of Christ despite being involved in sexual abuse and sired children. One could only imagine how the Church railroaded the canonization of this pope when he made calamitous appointments. The process of making someone a saint normally starts five years after an individual died. Pope Benedict XVI waived this in John Paul II's cause for sainthood. 
Moving on, instead of expediting the process of making saints, why not devote more time to discuss, discern, and plan ways of addressing more pressing issues such as shortage of priests (which has been further exacerbated by Covid-19), welcoming families from irregular unions into the Church, making the sacraments more accessible especially in far flung areas, a better system of reporting sexual abuse and holding perpetrators accountable, empowering women, laity, and children in the Church's decision-making process, etc?
Another area that the Church should focus on is transparency in dealing with sexual abuse committed by its clergy, including cover-ups by their superiors. Jesus told His disciples to look after the sheep. Such command is extended to all bishops and priests. It is a must that they take this order seriously. Otherwise, "it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea". (Matthew 18:6).
As we make our Advent journey, let us renew our commitment to be a faithful, hopeful, and charitable people. Faith calls us to believe in God's plan of salvation. Hope prods us to trust in God's providence amidst the dark clouds hovering on the Church. Charity challenges us to stand up for the last, the least, and the lost.