Lord's Day of the Apprentices of St. Joseph

Songs All stand and praise God in song.

Reading of the Covenant All sit and listen as an Apprentice reads the covenant.

The Covenant
of the Apprentices of St. Joseph

So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him.
Male and female He created them.

Gen 1:27

There is only one reason for maturing into the man God calls each of us to be. That sole reason, that sole purpose, is to love, know, and serve God—to be transformed completely in Jesus Christ. Rather, to let Him live perfectly in us. To this end, we look to Jesus Christ as our fountain of grace, as our model of Faith, Hope, and Charity. Union with Him is the ultimate goal in our lives, yet He is also the Truth which we seek and the One Who leads us every step along this journey. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Our Lord Jesus Christ, being fully God, emptied Himself to become fully man, and chose to learn how to be a man from a humble carpenter—St. Joseph. Though we have no record of his words in the Gospel accounts, St. Joseph was a man of action, seeking only to do God’s Will. His life consisted of raising and loving as his own the Eternal Son of God, and caring for Our Lady, the Mother of God. He personified every virtue—most notably humility, fortitude, chastity, faith, hope and finally charity.

We humbly beg St. Joseph to accept us as his lowly apprentices, that he may teach us the ways of manhood in all things, as he taught Our Lord. We submit ourselves to his holy patronage, his loving guidance, recognizing that he is the instrument through which Christ will fully transform our lives.

As apprentices of St. Joseph, we humbly accept the challenge to love Our Lady as he did—with all honor and reverence. We have a special devotion to her under her glorious title of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Protectress of the Unborn and Patroness of the Americas. We will endeavor also to honor all women as reflections of Our Lady, the masterpiece of God’s creation, so as to see all women as the "Flowers of Christendom".

Finally, it is imperative that we see our household brotherhood as the manifestation of our individual journeys towards personal holiness.

At this moment, and every moment afterward, let this covenant be the commitment of the Apprentices of St. Joseph, that we may follow perfectly the command of our Most Holy Mother Church . . .

ITE AD JOSEPH.

Five Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary Gramps leads the Rosary. He leads the opening prayers and the first decade. Then, he announces each mystery, and each decade is spontaneously led by whoever feels inspired to do so at that moment.

Household Prayer to St. Joseph (page 24) At the conclusion of the Rosary, all stand, face the statue of St. Joseph, and pray the household prayer.

All: O St. Joseph, whose protection is so great, so strong, so prompt before the throne of God, I place in thee all my interests and desires.

O St. Joseph, assist me by thy powerful intercession and obtain for me all spiritual blessings through thy foster Son, Jesus Christ Our Lord, so that, having engaged here below thy heavenly power, I may offer thee my thanksgiving and homage.

O St. Joseph, I never weary contemplating thee and Jesus asleep in thine arms. I dare not approach while He reposes hear thy heart. Press Him in my name and kiss His fine head for me, and ask Him to return the kiss when I draw my dying breath.

Gramps: St. Joseph, patron of departing souls,

All: Pray for us.

Gramps: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

All: Amen.

First and Second Readings of the Lord’s Day All sit, and listen as the Bruce reads the readings for Sunday.

Gospel Acclamation All stand, and sing the acclamation.

Gospel Gramps reads the Gospel.

Reflections on the readings All sit, and begin to discuss the readings. The conclusion should entail someone trying to apply the readings to the life and example of St. Joseph. If possible, recall the relevance of the last week’s readings in relation to those of this week, and see how these are applicable to the Apprentices.

Breaking of the Bread Gramps takes the bread, and says, (leaving out the citations, of course) “Our Lord teaches us, ‘The seed sown among thorns is the one who hears the word, but the worldly anxiety and the lures of riches choke the word and it bears no fruit. But a seed sown on rich soil is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields it a hundred or sixty or even thirty fold (Mt 13:22-23). So let us take the example of the hundreds of wheat kernels that grew into the wheat which died to make this bread. So too must we die to ourselves. So, brothers, let us offer up prayers of Thanksgiving to the Most Blessed Trinity, our God.”

Gramps offers his thanksgiving, breaks off a piece of the bread to eat and passes the loaf to his left. Before the next person can start, Gramps must press his or her invisible “start button”. This consists of poking the person on the arm, head, or other appropriate area, often accompanying this gesture with some kind of sound effect. Each person offers his thanksgiving, takes a piece of bread, and presses the "start button" of the next person in turn. The bread is generally eaten now and not saved for later.

The Sharing of the Cup Gramps takes the cup and blows in it to make sure it is clean. Then, he fills the cup with wine, and says,(again leaving out the citations) "Beloved, Jesus has told us, "I am the true vine and my Father is the vine grower. He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and every one that does he prunes so it bears more fruit (Jn 15:1-2). Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing (Jn 15:5). If you remain in me and my words in you, ask for whatever you want and it will be done for you (Jn 15:7). So, brothers, let us offer supplications to Our Lord using this symbol of the fruit we must bear. Let us remember that as we share the fruit of the vine, so too must the whole Mystical Body of Christ share the fruits of the Father’s vineyards, that is, our labors.

Gramps offers his petitions, sips the wine and passes the cup to his left, once again observing the "start button" tradition. Each person offers his petition, sips the wine, and presses the next person’s "start button" in turn

The Praises of St. Joseph All stand, face the statue of St. Joseph, and recite the Praises of St. Joseph.

All: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Gramps: O holy Patriarch Joseph, ever blessed be thy soul, which was adorned with all the virtues and gifts of the Holy Ghost. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.