The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1920-08-28
LETTER OF POPE BENEDICT XIV.

they may follow him as their special
guide and honor him as their heavenly
Patron
He in very truth lived life like
theirs. So true is that that Our Lord
Jesus Christ Himself, while He was
the only begotten Son of the Eternal
Father, willed to be called "the Son
Of the Carpenter" But with how
many and glorious virtues did he
adorn that humble condition-vir-
tues indeed which it was meet should
shine in the Spouse of Mary Immacu-
late-the reputed father of Christ
Jesus. Therefore let all learn from
st. Joseph how to look on passing
events in the light of the eternal
things to come, and seeking consola-
ton for the inevitable troubles of hui
man life in the hope of celestial
blessings, aspire to those with all
their strength, resigned to the will of
God, living soberly according to the
rules of piety and justice. And as re-
CARDS working men especially, it
pleases us to reproduce here what our
Predecessor Of blessed memory, Leo
Alll, said under similar circum-
stances, for we think nothing could be
more to the purpose than his words
In considering those things the
poor and all who live by labor should
be animated by higher sentiment of
equity; for if justice allows them to
raise themselves from poverty and at
tain greater condition of prosperity.
justice and reason itself forbid them
to disturb order constituted by Divine
Providence. And indeed it is foolish
counsel to use violence and to seek
betterment by revolution and disturb
ance which more often than not, have
only the effect of making far worse
the conditions they wished to improve.
II they are wise the poor will not put
their trust in the empty promises of
demagogues but rather in the example
and the patronage of st. Joseph and
the charity Of their Mother Church,
every day intensifying it's care of
them" (Encyclical Letter Quamquam
pluries)
Family the Fulcrum of Society.
With increase of devotion to St
Joseph viii come corresponding in
crease Of devotion to the Holy Fam
lily of Nazareth of which he was the
August Head, for the one arises nat
urally from the other. From st. Jo-
seph we go directly to Mary and
thrO11pb to rf, oil loI
ness Jesus Christ who consecrated the
domestic virtues in His obedience to
Joseph and Mary. 1t is then by these
great examples of virtue that we de-
sire Christian families should be Ill
spired and restored. 1t is thus and
thus only, because the family is the
fulcrum and the basis of the commun-
ity, giving to domestic life the
strength of holy purity, faithfulness
and concord, that new strength and,
we might almost say, new blood will
circulate in the veins of the whole
human society which will have new
life given to it by the healing virtues
of Jesus Christ. Improvement will
follow not only in private customs but
in public life and civil discipline
We therefore, putting full trust in
the patronage of Him to whose watch
full care it pleased Almighty God to
entrust the guardianship of His In
carnate only begotten Son, and in the
Blessed Virgin, most earnestly eXhorr
all the Bishops of the Catholic world
thot in thocn fironc fr11I Of iaf1
for the Church they urge the faithful
to seek even more fervently the pow
erful aid of st. Joseph. And inasmuch
as there are many ways approved by
this Apostolic See in which the Holy
Patriarch may be venerated, espe-
year and throughout the month con-
secrated to Him, we desire that at
the bidding of the Bishops all these
devotions shall be carried out to the
fullest extent possible in all dioceses.
But in special manner, as he is held
dying, Our Lord Himself and His
Blessed Mother having been present
at his death bed, the sacred pastors
should do everything possible to pro-
mote and support with all the prestige
of their authority those pious sodal-
tiles formed to implore the aid of St.
Joseph for the dying, for instance
those of the Bona Morte," the "Tran-
stu S. Joseph and the "Pro Agon-
izantibus."
TO commemorate the above Pontif-
ical Decree we ordain and enioin that
within a year from the eighth day Of
December next there shall be cele-
| brated throughout the Catholic
world in honor of st. Joseph, Patron
of the Universal Church, a solemn
function, the time and manner of
which is left to the discretion of each
Bishop, and to all those who may as.
sist we now grant Plenary Indulgence
on the usual conditions.
Given at Rome at St. Peters the
twenty-fifth day of July, Feast of St
James the Apostle, in the year 1920
the sixth of Our Pontifcate.
l