The Cathedral Church of St Joseph

Fr Aynsley showed me, on his computer, the website of St Joseph's Cathedral Restoration Project and other information. It certainly made interesting reading. It is very good that someone has taken the time to put St Joseph's into the website. Thank you for your initiative.

With Prayerful best wishes

Sincerely in Christ

+L A Boyle

Bishop of Dunedin

Presidential chair returned to Cathedral

The Presidential Chair, back where it belongs in St Joseph's Cathedral.

About three years ago the Presidential Chair mysteriously disappeared from St Joseph's Cathedral, where it has been for over 100 years. The police were informed of the theft and an investigation was carried out, but the chair was never found. Last month, in equally mysterious circumstances, it came back.

In the afternoon of 14 September, a parishioner discovered the chair where it had been left outside the back door of the Cathedral. There was no clue as to where it had spent the last three years, but the valuable antique chair, with its padded leather upholstery and intricately carved frame, appeared to have suffered no damage during its absence from its episcopal home.

Go to top

Cathedral has website

St Joseph's Cathedral now has a website with information about its history, the restoration project, its Bishops, the life of the cathedral, and its importance in the Dunedin diocese.

Much of the material comes from the centennial book of St Joseph's Cathedral written by
Monsignor Peter Mee, former cathedral administrator.

You are most welcome to explore this parish website at: http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~mpeyroux/

The life of St Joseph

St Joseph and Child Jesus
Joseph and Child Jesus

J = Joseph the Just Man

Sacred Scripture and John Paul II (in his apostolic exhortation "The Guardian of the Redeemer) call Joseph "The Just Man". What does this mean? It means that he was a holy man, a righteous man, a man of honesty, integrity and virtue. St Joseph is the greatest saint and holiest human being after the Blessed Mother. In fact, some of the Doctors of the church claim that there was no grace ever given to any of the saints that was not given to St Joseph as well.

St Thomas Aquinas says that God gives grace proportionate to our office and to our state in life. So if you are a husband and father, you will be given the grave to be a holy husband and father. If someone is ordained a priest, he will be given the grace to be a holy priest. Think how much grace St Joseph received to be the foster father of the Son of God and the virginal spouse of Mary, the Immaculate Conception. St Joseph is the greatest of saints because he was the closest one to Jesus and to the Blessed Mother.

O = Joseph the Obedient One.

Joseph was truly obedient to the will of God in his life. The angel said, "Have no fear about taking Mary as your wife." As soon as Joseph knew God's will for him, he obeyed. When the angel told Joseph that Herod was planning to destroy the child, Joseph immediately began the flight to Egypt. Some people ask if St Joseph was old. This is due to the apocryphal writings of the early church, ancient writings which were not divinely inspired, or approved by the Church as Sacred Scripture. One ancient writing says that when Joseph married the Blessed Mother he was 89 years old, and that he died at the age of 111. There is nothing in the bible to suggest that St Joseph was so old. Actually, someone believes he was young and strong, perhaps in his 20s or 30s. He was Our Lady's guardian and protector. Scripture speaks about Mary's betrothal to a "man" named Joseph. It does not use the word for an "old man" as it does for Simeon or Zachary. Even in the ancient catacomb of Priscilla, Joseph was drawn without a beard, showing him to be a young man.

Joseph was an obedient man. Whenever he was warned in a dream, he always obeyed the will of God, for he never questioned Divine Providence. Even though Mary was more than eight months pregnant, Joseph believed it was God's will for them to leave Nazareth and go down to Bethlehem. This was to fulfill the prophecy of Micah that the Saviour would be born in Bethlehem. Joseph abandoned himself to the will of God. Ask yourself these questions: "Am I obedient to the teaching of Christ and the church on marriage and family life?" Men of all vocations can turn to St Joseph to become obedient sons of the Church.

S = Joseph the Silent One.

There are no recorded words of St Joseph in Scripture. There are words in the Old Testament for Joseph the great patriarch that can be applied to St Joseph, but no spoken words of his are found in the New Testament. Yet, he's there, a silent presence. Even his death is wrapped in silence. There is no account as to when he died or where he was buried. He's a man of silence. A man of strength. A man of deep interior life. Silence in our life helps us develop a life of prayer. Joseph was a man of prayer who listened to the word of God. Exterior things did not distract him - he was always a man of interior life. Why? Because he lived in the presence of the Incarnate God.

We picture St Joseph as a silent worker, as a craftsman, who suffered in silence. He did not complain, and he did not grow angry with God and say, "Why are you doing this, why do we have to flee to Egypt?" He was a man who accepted these things in silence. We should ask ourselves, "Do I have enough silence in my life?" Do I spend enough time in prayer with Jesus? Do I listen to Jesus when He speaks to me during the Sunday readings? Do I spend time before the Blessed Sacrament listening to Jesus who is truly present? Do I waste my speech with empty words, or worse, is there dying, gossiping or backbiting? Or, do I follow St Joseph by being a man (or woman) of virtue and silence?"

E = Joseph the example

Imagine the kind of man Joseph was. God the Father picked Joseph out of the whole human race to be the man to raise His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. When you get a baby-sitter you don't just pick anyone, even if it is for only a few hours. Imagine entrusting the care of your only child to another person. Adoption agencies are very careful in selecting those to whom they entrust other people's children. God also chooses carefully. He chose St Joseph to be the model for His Son.

St Joseph was an example to Jesus in his words and in his actions. He has been called the world's greatest father. Joseph was truly a father to Jesus in every way except for physical generation. He was the father who taught Jesus how to speak, how to read and how to make doors and plows. Remember the saying, "Your example speaks so loudly I cannot hear what you say." Isn't that the way children think of their parents? What was the example that St Joseph gave to Jesus? He was the perfect example, the world's greatest father, the educator of Jesus, and the mold of his manhood.

Joseph "home schooled" Jesus and taught him the carpentry trade. Even through He was the Son of God and had the beatific vision, Jesus had to grow in experiential knowledge, and had to develop maturity. Jesus looked up to St Joseph, even imitating his mannerisms. So, reflect for a moment, "What example do you give? Do you teach your children the Catholic Faith? Do you study your own Faith by reading at least 20-20 minutes every day? Do you make good use of your travel time listening to cassette tapes to deepen your faith? Are you living out your vocation as spiritual leader of your family?

P = Joseph the patron

St Joseph is our benefactor who prays for us. He is the patron saint of husbands, fathers, and workers. We should always pray that we would have the same kind of death that St Joseph had, dying in the arms of Jesus and Mary. He is the patron saint of a happy death, which means dying in the arms of Jesus and Mary and in the embrace of Holy Mother Church. Pray to St Joseph for the grace of a happy death.

He is also the patron saint of the universal church. Everything that St Joseph did for Jesus , he now does for the church. Why? Because the Catholic Church is the Mystical body of Christ. The Blessed Mother is the mother of the church and St Joseph is the foster father and guardian of the Church.

H = St Joseph the helper of the Blessed Mother

St Joseph was the virginal spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In God's plan of salvation he was a loving husband, kind, considerate, affectionate and self-sacrificing.

St Joseph had the responsibility for spiritual leadership as the head of the family. God message from the angel was revealed to him even through the blessed Mother was much holier due to her Immaculate Conception. St Joseph was chosen because he was the head of that family, just as every father is the spiritual head of his family.

Joseph and Mary worked as a team. The word "team" could stand for "together everyone achieve more".

Develop teamwork with your wife. Zig Zigler, in his book Courtship after Marriage uses the example of the Belgian horse. These huge Belgian horses can pull 8,000 1bs individually, but when they are harnessed together and trained to pull as a team, they can pull 32,000 1bs. Isn't that amazing? So when you are united with your spouse in an effort to move your family towards God, you will accomplish much more as a couple than you could on your own. Ask yourself, "Do I help my spouse?" Are we working as a team to bring our children closer to God?" Your vocation is really - by co-operating with God's grace - to get yourself, your spouse and your children to Heaven. This is your ultimate vocation in Life.

Go to top

OTAGO DAILY TIMES, Monday, December 4, 2000

En masses ... hundreds gather at yesterday's Catholic Jubilee Mass at the Dunedin Town Hall
Many gather to celebrate

One of the largest gatherings of Catholics in Dunedin occurred in the city yesterday.

About 2400 people took part in the Jubilee Mass at the Dunedin Town Hall, part of the celebrations for the Jubilee 2000 year announced by Pope John Paul II, Dunedin Jubilee Committee chairman Trevor Pullar said when contacted yesterday.

The Jubilee celebration taking place throughout Otago and Southland centred on a large regional Mass being held at four separate venues - Alexandra, Dunedin, Invercargill and Gore.

About 600 people attended the Alexandra Mass last weekend, and big crowds were also hoped for in Invercargill next Sunday and in Gore on December 17, Mr Pullar said.

Yesterday's Mass attended by people from Oamaru to Milton, was led by the Catholic Bishop of Dunedin, the Most Rev Len Boyle. About 30 priests shared in the Mass with him.

Describing the Mass as "quite colourful", Mr Pullar said different ethnic groups were represented by people wearing their national dress for the offertory procession.

Dunedin lawyer and businessman John Farry, who received a papal medal last year for his services to the Roman Catholic community, gave a speech at the end of the two-hour Mass. His comments included reference to the role of the Catholic church in the region's history, in particular the importance of past and present priests and religious orders, Mr Pullar said.

Mr Pullar described the weekend as a success and said he was delighted with "the way Catholic people have responded to this very special occassion".

Although the Mass was the key weekend event for the celebrations, a Friday night function for young people was included and on Saturday about 40 groups set up displays in the Dunedin Town Hall to showcase their activities.

Mr Pullar said the display aimed to show the religious and wider community what Catholic groups and organisations were doing.

It was the first time a display of that kind had been held in Dunedin and he was pleased at the result.

Among the groups displaying their activities were Dunedin parishes, religious orders, and Catholic social services.

Entertainment included singing and dancing by the Polish Heritage Group and the Samoan Community.

Wednesday, 14 February, 2001 was the anniversary of the opening of the Cathedral 115 years ago under the direction of Bishop Patrick Moran. At the 9.30am Dedication Mass, Bishop Len Boyle spoke with great pride and enthusiasm about the beautiful Gothic Cathedral, the Mother Church of the Diocese. It was fortunate that the Cathedral was being constructed at the same time as Larnach's Castle, and Mr Godfrey was able to assist with getting materials from England.

St Joseph's Cathedral is one of the finest Catholic Churches in New Zealand.

The people in this Diocese are very fortunate indeed.

Did you know this?

When most people hear of 'The 12 Days of Christmas' they think of the song. This song had its origins as a teaching tool to instruct young people in the meaning and the content of the Christian faith. From 1558 to 1829 Catholics in England were not able to practice their faith openly so that they had to find other ways to pass on their beliefs. The song 'The Twelve Days of Christmas' is one example of how they did it. 'The Twelve Days of Christmas' is in a sense an allegory. Each of the items in the song represents something of religious significance. The hidden meaning of each gift was designed to help young Christians learn their faith.

The song goes, 'On the first day of Christmas my true love sent to me...'The 'true love' represents God, and the 'me' who receives these presents is the Christian.

The 'partridge in a pear tree' was Jesus Christ who died on a tree as a gift from God.

The 'turtle doves' were the Old and New Testaments - another gift from God.

The 'three French hens' were faith, hope and love - the three gifts of the Spirit 'that abide'

The 'four calling birds' were the four Gospels which sing the song of salvation through Jesus Christ.

The 'five golden rings' were the first five books of the Bible also called the 'Books of Moses.

The 'six geese a laying' were the six days of creation.

The 'seven swans a swimming' were the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit.

The 'eight maids a milking' were the eight Beatitudes.

The 'nine ladies dancing' were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit.

The 'ten lords a leaping' were the Ten Commandments.

The 'eleven pipers piping' were the eleven faithful disciples.

The 'twelve drummers drumming' were the twelve points of the Apostles Creed.

So the next time you hear 'The Twelve Days of Christmas' consider how this otherwise non-religious sounding song had its origin in the Christian faith.

The year 2000 will be a great celebration for all Christians. The following explanation of the Jubilee 2000 helps us to understand what it is we are celebrating.

Jubilee 2000

The circular, blue field indicates the universe; a cross is inscribed which sustains and upholds humanity together in the five continents represented by five doves.

The cross is represented with the same colours as the doves in order to signify the mystery of the incarnation whereby Christ assumes a human condition. God thus enters into human history and redeems it.

The light which issues from the centre of the design stands for Christ who is the light of the world. He is the "One Saviour, Yesterday, Today, and Forever".

The circular form in which the doves are represented underlines the Spirit of solidarity which animates the Great Jubilee of the year 2000.

Go to top