A Father’s Heart, a new documentary from Goya Productions about St. Joseph will be in theatres on May 1st in English and May 2 in Spanish and will certainly reinvigorate a love for the foster father of Jesus among devoted Catholic faithful. I recently had the chance to pre-screen it and was deeply moved by the presentation. A handful of films have brought me to my knees in prayer afterwards, Fatima and Alive were two examples where I prayed the rosary after the one and spent time before the tabernacle after the other. After watching A Father’s Heart, I wanted to immediately turn to the intercession of St. Joseph. Here are a few more of my reactions to A Father’s Heart.
It Gave Me a Sense of Adventure
A Father’s Heart is really a pilgrimage. That’s how it begins with the narrator taking us to France to Cotignac where St. Joseph appeared to a shepherd and told him to move a rock and he would find water to drink. That’s exactly what Gaspard did; water flowed, and the power of St. Joseph’s intercession and grace continues to flow from that shrine today. I’m willing to bet that I’ve heard of Cotignac in passing, but I did not know the full story, and hearing about the testimonies of infertile couples, it has been added to my list of places I want to go. For years, I have had a charism of praying and interceding for couples struggling to conceive through the intercession of Our Lady of La Leche. I was delighted to learn about this shrine and St. Joseph’s help for couples too! The movie also takes you all over the world to Barcelona in Spain, to an Italian convent where a nun years ago saw St. Joseph was cured of her illness, to Toledo, Montreal, and Nazareth. I’ve been to St. Joseph’s Oratory in Montreal before, but I also had a sense of wanting to return there. Hearing of these shrines and places of devotion to St. Joseph instilled within me a wanderlust to visit these holy places and implore the intercession of St. Joseph.
A Renewed Interest in Devotion to St. Joseph
Living in the Diocese of Green Bay, one of the National Shrines of St. Joseph is located here at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wisconsin. Devoted Catholics know of different ways they can be devoted to St. Joseph, perhaps the most popular being a nine-day novena. A Father’s Heart communicates the power of prayer through testimony as several individuals shared the grace they received from a novena. For others, it was not nine days, but it was after a thirty-day prayer to St. Joseph. A while back, Pope Francis popularized the sleeping St. Joseph statue, stating he often placed petitions under St. Joseph as a form of devotion asking him to intercede. Watching this movie, reminded me of the necessity of a simpler faith and trust in approaching St. Joseph. I have lacked in such simple devotions. After watching the movie, I resolved to go to Joseph more often, and might give a try to the petitions under a statue. Admittedly, I’ve tried several times to do the Consecration to St. Joseph and have failed, but I have a greater resolve now to make the consecration and to do it soon!
A Better Understanding of St. Joseph’s Mission
St. Joseph was tasked with being the foster father of Jesus. He protects the Christ child and brings him into Egypt when his life was threatened. He was a worker as a carpenter and a provider for his family. It was moving to see how people were able to relate to St. Joseph and truly take him as a model and intercessor. One takeaway from the documentary is the realization that St. Joseph’s mission did not end when he died, but it continues in the Church today as an intercessor for the universal church and by his prayers for the sick and the dying.
A Priestly Devotion to St. Joseph
A bonus to seeing A Father’s Heart is the bonus feature of a documentary short produced by the Knights of Columbus called Our Liberator: St. Joseph and the Priests of Dachau. I was familiar with a few priestly stories surrounding the Holocaust. St. Maximilian Kolbe immediately comes to mind, Fr. Joseph Kentencih, the founder of Schoenstatt too. I’m willing to bet if I would have read the book Priestblock 25487, I would have learned more. The documentary short deepened in my soul the appreciation for the Mass and the Eucharist. The priests who were imprisoned there would say Mass, one after the other, and risked everything to bring other Catholics Holy Communion. The priests of Dachau were aware of the Shrine of Kalisz in Poland. Beginning on April 14th and ending on April 22nd, they prayed a novena to St. Joseph and promised they would make a pilgrimage of thanksgiving to the shrine and promote family values. It was only a few days after the nonena that Dachau was liberated. St. Joseph interceded and intervened. It was a beautiful story of God’s grace that I was unfamiliar with and am grateful that now it will be known by a wider audience. Priests like those who served in Dachau can inspire vocations today.
Go See A Father’s Heart
A Father’s Heart is produced by a non-English company from Europe. It is dubbed in English except for Fr. Donald Calloway, an English speaker. I am often bothered by dubbed films. While at times the translation is clunky, the story communicated by A Father’s Heart is worth seeing. It left an impression on my heart, soul, and reinvigorated my devotion to St. Joseph. To learn where you can see A Father’s Heart check out: https://www.fathomevents.com/events/A-Father’s-Heart
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