Prayer to St. Joseph

St. Joseph is the “Patron of the Universal (Catholic) Church and of priests and seminarians as well as a happy death! He is considered the model of righteousness, workers, single and married men, the protector of children, consolator of the poor, rescuer of sinners, guardian of families, the sick and the poor! In the New Testament, St. Joseph is a man that was given the unique mission of bringing up God’s Son. He took Mary as his wife, who was with child and protected both of them. He was the first to see Jesus born! Four times in the Gospel, Christ is called “ the son of Joseph” which no other saint can claim! Many turn to St. Joseph for help because of all these reasons and ask him to not forget them in their day to day lives by praying the Memorare of St. Joseph.
Did you know that the word Joseph means “to increase”; let St. Joseph help you increase your love for God. Just as God entrusted His only Son, Jesus, to St. Joseph, you too can entrust yourself and all of your needs, both material and spiritual, to St. Joseph. The feast day of St. Joseph is March 19th, as is May 1st where we celebrate St. Joseph the artisan (worker). Many Saints and Popes created prayers and have prayed to St. Joseph. Several Popes have created prayers of consecration to St. Joseph as well.  

Two short prayers to St. Joseph

Here is a morning prayer to St. Joseph and the Hail St. Joseph which is very similar to the Hail Mary.

Hail Joseph

"Hail Joseph the just, wisdom is with you;
Blessed are you among men and blessed is Jesus,
The fruit of Mary, your faithful spouse.
Holy Joseph, worthy foster-father of Jesus Christ,
Pray for us sinners and
Obtain divine wisdom for us from God,
Now and at the hour of our death.
Amen."

A Morning Prayer to St. Joseph (from a primary school)

"Dear St. Joseph, accept the offering I make to you. Be my father, protector, and guide in the way of salvation. Obtain for me purity of heart and a love for the spiritual life. After your example, let all my actions be directed to the greater glory of God, in union with the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and your own paternal heart. Finally, pray for me that I may share in the peace and joy of your holy death. Amen."

Other Ways of Praying to St. Joseph

The St. Joseph Rosary

Did you know that it is possible to pray the rosary to St. Joseph? Less known than its homonym to Mary, it is prayed in the same way with just a few differences: it is made up of 15 mysteries (5 Glorious, 5 Sorrowful, 5 Joyful) and not 20.  While meditating on the mysteries, the traditional Hail Mary is replaced by the Hail Joseph, followed by:

 “Glory be to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.”

The rosary can be ended either with the Litany of St. Joseph or the Memorare to St. Joseph. Here are more details on the rosary to St. Joseph and its mysteries.

Novenas to St. Joseph

In the Catholic tradition, St. Joseph is usually prayed to with novenas asking help in precise situations. A novena is a series of prayers that are said for 9 consecutive days. The novena is by excellence usually associated with a prayer to the Holy Family as it shows fidelity and perseverance in prayer just as Joseph was with Mary and Jesus. Novenas to St. Joseph are usually done to ask his intercession in finding employment, a place to live, and showing men how to be good husbands and fathers just as St. Joseph was. If you want to give more time in prayer to St. Joseph, you can do a 30 Day Novena. Another way of praying to St. Joseph, when in a difficult situation, is to recite the Miraculous Prayer! Miracles happen everyday in our lives; we just have to open up our hearts and souls to the infinite love and mercy of the Lord! 

Join us in our worldwide novena to St. Joseph from March 11th to 19th and from April 23rd to May 1st!

Devotion to St. Joseph

St. Josemaria Escriva says “Love St. Joseph a lot. Love him with all your soul, because he, together with Jesus, is the person who has most loved our Blessed Mother and been closest to God. He is the person who has most loved God, after our Mother. He deserves your affection, and it will do you good to get to know him, because he is the Master of the interior life, and has great power before the Lord and before the mother of God.”

Why Pray to St. Joseph

St. Joseph is the only saint that knew Jesus personally for 30 years! He was there for Jesus’ birth and was His earthly father, teaching Him everything He needed to know before His public ministry.  The carpenter of Nazareth is described as a man who is patient, humble, and most of all solid and faithful. All of these qualities make him the Catholic Saint most prayed to.

St. Teresa of Avila, tells us herself that “knowing by experience St. Joseph’s astonishing influence with God, I would wish to persuade everyone to honor him with particular devotion. He extends his power over all of our needs (...) Already, in recent years, on his feast day, each time that I have asked him a special favor, it has always been granted.” The father of the Holy Family, provided that he is prayed to with fervor and fidelity, has the reputation of never leaving his prayers in darkness and has always answered their prayers.

When to Pray to St. Joseph

Pope Francis tells us on March 19th, the feast of St. Joseph. “Dear young people, look upon St. Joseph as an example of a man who led a humble and discrete life. Dear sick, increase your silence and prayer, learn to carry the cross with an attitude of silence and prayer of the adoptive father of Jesus, St. Joseph. Dear newly married, build your family with the same love that united Mary and her husband Joseph. I also entrust parents and priests under the protection of St. Joseph, as well as all those who have an educative role in the Church and in society.”

All of the qualities of this important christian saint makes him the patron of families, couples, workers, studies, housing, difficult cases, terror of demons…. and many more!

You can pray to St. Joseph in many different situations:

• To find employment (a job)
• To find housing (buy and sell)
• To be successful in your studies (you have to also work at it!)
• For your family, your couple, or to find your soul mate (St. Anthony also answers this petition)
• To fight against your demons (temptations) and get out of difficult situations
• For the dearly departed

Pray to St. Joseph with Hozana

St. Joseph, by his fidelity and his exemplary life, is a unique saint. If you want to make progress in your prayer life and increase in holiness, don’t forget to pray to St. Joseph. If you wish to receive many graces from God, ask him to be your mediator!

Hozana can help you to keep your promise of being faithful and persevering in your prayer life as it has many spiritual propositions to offer you. Receive each day a prayer to St. Joseph or a novena to find a job or for a difficult situation. You can even make an Act of Consecration to him!