St. Joseph Tapestry

St. Joseph is the foster father of Jesus (cf. Matthew 1:18-25) and the patron saint of the Universal Church. On this tapestry St. Joseph is shown as Father, Teacher, Worker, and Protector of the boy, Jesus. By placing St. Joseph in the Detroit environment, the themes of his protection of the Church, love for the young, and the sanctity of work are expressed.

We place images of the saints in our church for much the same reason we place images of our family and friends in our homes: to be reminded of their love and concern for us. Additionally, images of the saints serve to inspire us to follow Christ as they did: through life's ups and downs, turning toward Christ anew after falling into sin, deepening a life of prayer, and being more and more other-centered by serving others out of love for Christ. The saints desire us to join them in heaven and help us through their intercession and example. With and through Christ, the saints cooperate in the work of salvation.

This tapestry was executed by Stadelmaier Studios in Nijmegen, Holland.