“The contemplation of Christ has a remarkable model in Mary. In a unique way the face of the Son belongs to Mary..." (Pope Saint John Paul II).
The Miracle of the Sun is also known as the Miracle of Fátima was a ten-minute phenomenon that occurred on 13 October 1917, and was witnessed by a very large crowd of people who had gathered in Fátima, Portugal.
During the miracle, the Virgin Mary – called Our Lady of Fátima – appeared to three shepherd children, Lúcia Santos and Francisco and Jacinta Marto and caused the sun to appear to “dance” or zig-zag in the sky, plummeting towards the Earth and emitting multi-colored light and radiant colours.
During the miracle, the visionaries of Fatima, Saints Jacinta and Francesco and Servant of God, Lucia, saw a vision. While all three children saw the joyful mysteries of the Rosary played out before them, Lucia saw the sorrowful and glorious mysteries as well.
The children also saw a vision of The Blessed Virgin, Christ Child and Saint Joseph in the sky blessing the world, by making the sign of the Cross over it…
And I have been reflecting on this part of the miracle, and this part of the vision over the last few days… You see, I have been reflecting on the significance of the children seeing Saint Joseph – foster father of Christ – standing with the Holy Family and blessing the world.
Pope Saint John Paul II said, “The contemplation of Christ has a remarkable model in Mary. In a unique way the face of the Son belongs to Mary. It was in her womb that Christ was formed, receiving from her a human resemblance which points to an even greater spiritual closeness. No one has ever devoted himself to the contemplation of the face of Christ as faithfully as Mary.”
And in reflecting on that Marian devotion to the Holy Face of God, my mind turns also to Saint Joseph. I imagine his soul. How beautiful it must be… You see, Saint Joseph was selected to LIVE WITH GOD. That means that Saint Joseph carried God in his arms, he taught God what to do, he spoke with God, he played with God, he attended to God when He was sick or tired or sad. Saint Joseph lived with God in a way that was even more intimate than the way that Adam and Eve lived with God – before the fall – in the Garden of Eden. You see, Saint Joseph’s soul – while not sinless – must surely have been very close to perfect. How could he not be? After all, if God provides the Grace that we need to accomplish His holy will, why would not He provide Saint Joseph with enough Grace to live a life of holiness?
And I cannot – using my tiny human mind – even think to understand the beauty of such a soul as that. And as I reflect on this, it occurs to me that there are such beautiful things waiting for me in eternity, such wonderfully beautiful things. FOr Saint Joseph kissed the Holy Face of God.
And knowing this, I can truly understand that I truly have nothing to fear…
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.
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