Episode 3050: St Joseph the Worker: A Model of Silent Fidelity - Morning Episode

Nightly Zoom Coordinates for Rosary:
Meeting ID: 865 8978 0399
Passcode: Wjjv4960!

Speak Lord for your Servant is Listening
Book Recommendation of the Day
"The Life and Glories of St. Joseph"
Author: Edward Healy Thompson
Based on the writings of: St. Bernard of Clairvaux, St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Teresa of Avila, St. Francis de Sales, and others.
This classic 19th-century book is a rich theological and spiritual treasury that draws heavily from the teachings of the great saints. It's not written by a saint directly, but it compiles and expands upon their views in a deeply reverent and scholarly way.
On such a great feast day I don’t want to bury the lead BUT
From a traditional Catholic perspective we must always check our leading voices of the day against our traditional faith. We don’t just pay lip service to it. If someone gains popularity even among conservative forces does not mean we provide full-fledged support or go along blindly. We first must say, “How does that a line with the doctrine of our faith”. End Stop.
Now you are probably asking what am I am referring to? Well Jordan Peterson is often viewed as the new voice of faith and conservative values. I listen to what he says with caution and occasionally with appreciation for his defense of objective truth and natural law, but ultimately I see it as incomplete and problematic due to his lack of supernatural faith and rejection of core Catholic dogmas.
Key Points of a Traditional Catholic Assessment:
1. Natural Law and Moral Order: Appreciated but Incomplete
• Peterson’s emphasis on personal responsibility, order, and hierarchy echoes natural law principles, which the Church teaches are inscribed on the human heart (cf. Romans 2:14–15).
• 14 For when the Gentiles, who have not the law, do by nature those things that are of the law; these having not the law, are a law to themselves:
15 Who shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness to them, and their thoughts between themselves accusing, or also defending one another.

Explanation (Traditional Catholic Perspective):
• This passage reveals a key teaching of St. Paul: even those who do not possess the Mosaic Law (i.e., the Gentiles) can still follow the natural law the moral law written by God on every human heart. Their conscience acts as a moral compass, bearing witness to what is right or wrong, and thus holds them accountable.
• This aligns with the Church’s doctrine on natural law, which teaches that every human being, regardless of religion or culture, has access to certain moral truths through reason and conscience. St. Thomas Aquinas confirms this in the Summa Theologiae (I-II, Q. 94), where he teaches that the natural law is “nothing else than the rational creature’s participation in the eternal law.”
• He rightly critiques moral relativism, gender ideology, and postmodernism errors condemned by the Church.
• However, he operates from a naturalistic, often Jungian psychological framework, (developed by Swiss psychiatrist Carl Gustav Jung, is a comprehensive theory of the human psyche that seeks to explain the structure and dynamics of personality, motivation, and personal development.) not a supernatural or sacramental worldview.
2. Spiritual Confusion and Relativism
• Peterson often speaks about the Bible and Christianity in mythological or archetypal terms, not as divine revelation. This is a major issue from a traditional Catholic view.
• His refusal to submit to any particular faith or Church especially the one, holy, Catholic, and apostolic Church means he falls short of truth as defined by extra Ecclesiam nulla salus (outside the Church there is no salvation).
3. Danger of Leading Souls Astray
• Traditional Catholics would warn that Peterson's intellectual appeal and partial truths can draw souls away from full conversion.
• He may inspire people to seek order and meaning, but without grace and the sacraments, this can become Pelagian or prideful trying to be good without God.
• His promotion of psychedelics and Jungian psychoanalysis can be spiritually dangerous.
4. Potential Instrument of Providence
• Some traditional Catholics believe God may use Peterson to prepare souls especially young men for a fuller encounter with truth.
• His challenge to modern chaos might serve as a “John the Baptist” figure, pointing toward higher truths, though Peterson himself is not the destination.
Quotes from Traditional Thinkers That Apply:
• St. Thomas Aquinas teaches that natural reason can lead one to know of God’s existence, but not to salvation without grace.
• Pope St. Pius X, in Pascendi Dominici Gregis, condemns modernist attempts to reduce faith to psychological experience which is similar to Peterson’s approach.
• Fr. Chad Ripperger and other traditional priest warn that exposure to spiritual ideas outside the Catholic tradition especially with psychological manipulation can open doors to spiritual harm.
Conclusion:
Jordan Peterson is not an enemy of truth, but he is not a teacher of the fullness of truth either. Traditional Catholics must be discerning: they may glean some insights about order and reason from him, but must firmly reject his errors and recognize that only the Catholic Church has the fullness of truth revealed by God. As St. Augustine says, “Our hearts are restless until they rest in Thee.
Okay now onto the great Man himself!
"St Joseph the Worker: A Model of Silent Fidelity and Fatherly Strength"
Today we dive into the rich heritage of the traditional Roman Catholic faith. Today is May 1st, 2025, and we celebrate the Feast of St. Joseph the Workman, established by Pope Pius XII to combat the atheistic celebration of "May Day" and to honor the sanctity of labor through the quiet, steadfast example of Saint Joseph, the Guardian of the Redeemer.
This day calls us not only to prayer and reverence but also to contemplation on the dignity of work, fatherhood, and the defense of the Christian family under the patronage of this silent and faithful protector of the Holy Family.

Epistle Reading: Wisdom 5:1–5 (from the 1962 Missal)
“Then shall the just stand with great constancy against those that have afflicted them and taken away their labors. These seeing it shall be troubled with terrible fear, and shall be amazed at the suddenness of their unexpected salvation. Saying within themselves, repenting and groaning for anguish of spirit: These are they, whom we had some time in derision, and for a parable of reproach. We fools esteemed their life madness, and their end without honor. Behold, how they are numbered among the children of God, and their lot is among the saints.”
Reflection:
This reading echoes the triumph of the just over the fleeting victories of the wicked. It is especially fitting on this feast of St. Joseph, who, though obscure and hidden from the eyes of the world, is exalted as the head of the Holy Family and Protector of the Universal Church. In our age, where Christian fatherhood is mocked and manual labor is undervalued or exploited, Joseph stands tall vindicated by God and honored by His saints.
Gospel Reading: John 14:1–13
“Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God: believe also in Me. In My Father’s house there are many mansions. If not, I would have told you: because I go to prepare a place for you... I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. No man cometh to the Father, but by Me.”
Reflection:
Here Our Lord offers comfort to His apostles and to us. The Christian life is marked by hope and eternal reward, not despair. On this feast, we remember that St. Joseph prepared a home for the Son of God on earth, and now shares in the joys of the heavenly mansions. Like Joseph, we too must trust that Christ is preparing a place for those who serve humbly and love deeply, even in silence.
Traditional Feast Day — May 1: Saint Joseph the Workman
Established in 1955 by Pope Pius XII, this feast presents St. Joseph as the model of Christian labor in response to the Marxist celebration of May Day. The Church, in her wisdom, elevates the spiritual meaning of work not as an end in itself, nor as a tool of class struggle but as participation in God’s creative act, ennobled through humility, charity, and justice.
Quotes & Themes for the Day
Quote from Pope Pius XII (1955):
“The spirit flows to you and to all men from the heart of the God-Man, Savior of the world, but certainly, no worker was ever more completely and profoundly penetrated by it than the foster father of Jesus, who lived with Him in closest intimacy and community of family life and work.”
Themes:
• Sanctity of Work: Labor is not merely economic; it is redemptive when united to Christ.
• Hidden Holiness: Joseph teaches us that greatness is found not in noise or recognition, but in faithful obedience and humility.
• Christian Fatherhood: A call to men to defend the family, provide with diligence, and lead with virtue.
• Combatting Secularism: The Church places a saint before the world to oppose godless ideologies.
Conclusionary Prayer
Let us end with a prayer asking the intercession of Saint Joseph:
Prayer to St. Joseph the Worker (Traditional Form)
O Glorious St. Joseph, model of all who are devoted to labor, obtain for me the grace to work in a spirit of penance for the expiation of my many sins; to work conscientiously by placing the call of duty above my inclinations; to work with gratitude and joy, considering it an honor to develop and use by labor the gifts I have received from God.
Obtain for me the grace to labor in order to fulfill more perfectly my duties in life, to work with order, peace, moderation, and patience, never shrinking from weariness and trials. Help me to work above all with purity of intention and unselfishness, having always before my eyes the hour of death and the accounting which I must then render of time ill-spent, talents unused, good not done, and vain pride in success so fatal to the work of God.
All for Jesus, all through Mary, all in imitation of you, O Patriarch Joseph. This shall be my motto in life and in death. Amen.
Thank you for joining today. May Saint Joseph guide you in your labors, protect your families, and help us all work not for the praise of men but for the glory of God and the building up of His kingdom. Until next time, God bless you and keep the faith.