By Sister Karolyn Rose, O.C.D.
Who doesn’t want a terror of demons on their side of the fight? But how could this simple “average Joe” from whom not a single word is recorded in the Gospels have such a commanding title as the terror of demons?
We know very little about this highest of saints within our Catholic tradition. But what we do know is that Satan cowers to God and anyone unreservedly obedient to God is not only a threat but a terror!
God the Father entrusted St. Joseph to be the spouse of the Immaculate Conception, the Blessed Virgin Mary. He then went a step further and entrusted St. Joseph with the paternal care of His most vulnerable only begotten Son. St. Joseph not only said yes to this inconceivable mission but was completely self-giving when the circumstances were most inconvenient, unwanted and costly. He was able to adapt and move forward as life was and not how he thought it should be. If his utter obedience and strength to love in all boldness of purity, self-restraint and freedom were not enough to shake darkness to its core during his lifetime, his undeniable influence on the world and the Church today is enough to make demonic spirits shudder in his pure paternal gaze.
This terror of demons also has the ultimate advantage when it comes to intercessory prayer. Being the spouse of the Blessed Virgin and the foster father of Jesus, his sweet and tender voice has a way of consuming their pure hearts with love and thus his requests cannot help but be readily answered as coming from a spouse and father.
How could demonic spirits not see in this simple man called to an extraordinary destiny the ultimate rebuke? The demons have every reason to be terrified that when in need, you will “go to Joseph.”
Original watercolor paintings created by the Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles
