"Go To Joseph"
by Saint Teresa of Avila
Doctor of the Church
(From her Autobiography, Chapter VI)
Finding myself so crippled and so young too, and earthly doctors having failed to cure me, I looked
to heavenly physicians for help...
 |
Moses and the Brazen Serpent
-
by BOURDON, Sébastien -
from Museo del Prado, Madrid
(The Bronze Seraph cures the Israelites)
|
I took for my advocate and comforter
the glorious Saint Joseph, and commended
myself fervently to him; and I clearly saw that it was he who both cured me of my sickness and delivered
me from great dangers that threatened my good name and the loss of my soul. His aid has brought me more good than I ever desired to receive from him. I do not remember at any time having asked him for anything which he did not grant. I am quite amazed at the great
favors Our Lord has given me, and the many dangers, both of soul and body, from which He has delivered me through the intercession of this blessed saint. Our Lord seems to have given
to other saints the power to help us in only one kind of necessity, but I know from
experience that this glorious Saint Joseph helps us in all kinds of needs. It appears then that God wishes us to understand
that as He was obedient to
Joseph when He was on earth (for Saint Joseph was called His father
and he could command
Him) so now in Heaven God grants
whatever Joseph
asks.
Others, on my advice, have turned to Saint
Joseph and they have had the same experience; and
now there are many people who honor him and keep discovering the truth of what I have told them.
 |
Saint Teresa of Avila -
Doctor of the Church
|
I strove to celebrate his
feast day [March 19] with all possible solemnity, but I must admit
that there was more vanity than true devotion mixed in with the celebration, for I always wanted everything to be done
impressively and properly, even though my intentions were good. But it was always a fault of mine that whenever Our Lord gave me the graces to do something good, I added many faults and imperfections with it; whereas when it was a question of doing anything vain, worthless, or bad, I spent much time and
effort with it. May Our Lord pardon me!
I wish I could persuade everyone to be devoted to this glorious saint, because
long experience has shown me what wonderful blessings he obtains for us from God. Of all those I have
known with a true devotion to Saint Joseph, I have never known any who did not advance in virtue, for he assists in a very special
way those souls
who place themselves under his protection.
For many years now I have always asked favors from him and they were always
granted. But if sometimes my petitions had something wrong about them, dear Saint Joseph granted something much better for my own good.
Were I a person who had authority to write, I should gladly
relate in detail all the favors this dear patron obtained both for me and others; but under obedience I must tell some things briefly, and at length those incidents suggested
by my superiors. I only request, for the love
of God, that those of you who doubt what I
say will prove it for yourselves. And you will see, through experience, how great a blessing it is to commend
yourselves to this glorious patriarch, and to be devoted to him.
Those persons, especially, who
are given to prayer should ever be devoted to him, for I do not know how anyone can think of the Queen of Angels, at the time
when she suffered so much on
account of the Child Jesus, and not give thanks to Saint Joseph for taking care of them the way he did.
Whoever wants a model to imitate on how to pray, let him
take this glorious saint as a guide and he will not lose his way!
God grant that I
have not committed any error in speaking as I have....for although I profess to be devoted
to him, yet I
feel I have always failed in imitating his virtues. But he acted like himself, and showed us his virtues when he enabled me to rise and walk, and to be no more a cripple, And I, by making so
bad use of this favor, show what sort of person I am.
