Why are Mary and St Joseph not equally honored?

[Evan]

You can’t separate the HOLY FAMILY!!!
Trying to call favorites is the devil’s work… IMHO

I find it easy to separate the Holy Family

Jesus is God, Immortal, takes part in creation and sends the Holy Spirit. There is no comparison between Him and any creature.

Joseph died soon after the incarnation (say 30 years) so was not present during the ministry. He was the perfect protector of the Holy Family, taught Jesus the value of work (yesterday being the Memorial of Joseph the Worker), and is the patron of a Happy Death.

BVM is the greatest of God’s creatures, Queen of heaven, Theotokos, and the only human to live without sin.

Now if you are talking oranges, I would have trouble separating oranges, but the Holy Family, each is a unique individual, one is the legal Father, one is the birth Mother, and one is the Son.

My fav is always going to be Jesus, who is God and so loved me he died for my sins.

 

[Tony_the_mad]

St Joseph is honored perhaps more than any other Saint except Mary.

Most (if not all) Catholic Churches have a statue of Joseph. His name is mentioned during the Mass. He has two Feast Days (one of which is a Holy Day of Obligation at the Vatican and in some other countries)., etc.

I don’t think its that the Church doesn’t honor him. But perhaps the Faithful doesn’t give him the attention he deserves?

God Bless

Quite correct. In almost all of the churches that I have been in Mary is to the right and Joseph is to the left of Jesus.

Joseph does have a high place in the Church but it is not as high as Mary’s for a number of reasons:

In Jewish tradition, the Mother of the King is the Queen.

Joseph is featured prominently in only one book of the Bible (Matthew) and as far as I remember he is only in 2 books (Matthew and Luke). Mary is featured prominently in Luke and John and Acts and probably in Revelation. And she is mentioned in all of the Gospels, even if her name (again if I recall correctly) is not mentioned in John. In John, Mary is the new Eve and the Mother of the Church.

Mary was a disciple of Jesus and experienced His death and resurrection. Joseph died without that revelation. Joseph is one of only a handful of non-Christian saints, including John the Baptist of whom Jesus said was the greatest person who was not in the kingdom of God.

The Hail Mary is a prayer taken directly out of the Bible about Mary. And Mary’s presence at Jesus’ passion allows for and inspires the mysteries of the rosary. (In addition to the reference that Mary kept all this in her heart.)

Even though the genealogies are referenced through Joseph, the father of Jesus is truly God the Father. This leads to awkwardness that is not present with Jesus’ Mother. Representations of Joseph during the nativity, for example, often don’t know what to do with Joseph; He is often portrayed bored or sleeping (which is also a reference to how God communicated to Joseph in Matthew).

Mary has featured prominently in history of the Church. Her title of Theotokos (as opposed to Christotokos) were part of the fight over the nature of Christ as both fully God and fully human. Our Lady of Guadalupe and other Marian apparitions have also played a large role in the history of Christianity.

I am sure I am forgetting something and that others have and/or will fill in the blanks.

 

[Paul_Edwards]

1. Unlike Joseph, Mary was Sinless and the Purest Creature and Saint.
2. Mary is Jesus real Mother but Joseph is not Jesus real Father.

 

[Petaro]

Mary was conceived without sin. Mary was the Mother of Christ our God. Mary was honoured by being assumed bodily into Heaven.
But I am not for one moment going to get her off side by belittling the role and love shown in so many ways by St. Joseph! You get into these debates at your own peril. Her love for St Joseph must be so great as her protector and the love of Jesus for this very special man makes me laugh at comparisons.

 

[petra22]

Jesus chose his holy family and he blessed it with his presence. Also he blessed the family at the wedding feast at Canna with his first public miracle. He would love those who love Him and His family and the family relationships who try to imitate the Holy Family… He loves us all equally. Even the sinners(which we ALL are). He really doesn’t do comparisons. I don’t think he would want us to, either… Maybe that’s just a part of God we can’t comprehend yet! He loves every flower, every color, every bird and animal and insect–all unique in themselves.

I think it must be the people on earth who do not honor St. Joseph enough. Some people don’t like the honor given to Mother Mary AT ALL, to the extent it is keeping them from the truth that is JESUS…