Each year in the spring, I go back to my Midwestern roots and shake off the dust of winter with a good “spring cleaning.” More than just scouring and scrubbing, though, I think of it as a time to reorganize the closets and cleanse my wardrobe of pieces that I haven’t worn in the past year. These household organizational projects can lead to surprising — and nostalgic — discoveries.
If you’re anything like me, you’ll go to pare down the craft supplies in your spare bedroom closet only to find a box of artwork your mom kept from your elementary school days. Or amongst the old sports gear in the garage, you’ll find a trophy from your proudest moment as a high school athlete. You’ll take these items to the living room for temporary display, and share the stories conjured up by having them in hand once again, vowing to find a more prominent (or at least more thoughtful) place for them in your home.
As Catholics, we look to relics to hold these kinds of memories for us. Relics are “the bones, ashes, clothing, or personal possessions of the apostles and other holy people that are held in reverence by the Church and sometimes associated with miraculous healings and other acts of God.” In the same way that we would keep a favorite item of a grandmother who has passed away, or visit her grave, the Church keeps and venerates the bodily remains and earthly possessions of saints. These relics can remind us of the lives and deeds of people who lived exemplary lives by closely following God’s will.
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Though I grew up in a parish dedicated to St. Joseph, I was under the impression that the Church did not have any relics connected to him. We know that he passed away before Christ’s public ministry began, but the exact date is unknown, and there is very little in the historical record about his life or death; I assumed that with such little information about him, there was no way that any of his personal belongings would have survived. But recently, as I was doing some research about a different saint’s relics, I found out that I was incorrect — which felt a bit like discovering a long-forgotten memento while doing my spring cleaning!
The Basilica of St. Anastasia, one of the oldest churches in Rome, has been home to the cloak of St. Joseph for over 1,600 years. The cloak is believed to have been brought to Rome by St. Jerome in the 4th century. Tradition says that the cloak was preserved by a merchant from whom St. Joseph was purchasing wood. The saint had only about half the money he needed, so Mary suggested he use the mantle she had given him on their wedding day as collateral. Though the merchant was hesitant to accept it, the cloak soon became the source of miraculous healings for himself and his family. As a result, he provided further lumber to St. Joseph without charge — and refused to part with the cloak. Devotion to the cloak popularized the Holy Cloak Novena, a prayer that allows us to spiritually place ourselves under St. Joseph’s protection, imagining him placing his mantle on our shoulders. Prayed for 30 consecutive days, the novena is a powerful way to meditate upon the 30 years it is believed St. Joseph spent with Jesus.
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Though I was previously unaware of the cloak, I am no stranger to icons of St. Joseph. In my home, we have a painting of St. Joseph, Terror of Demons, a traditional title listed in the Litany of St. Joseph. The icon was given to us as a wedding gift from a friend who knew the ways in which Christ’s foster-father had blessed our relationship. My husband proposed to me in a parish dedicated to St. Joseph, close to where we met, and we were married in my home parish, the Cathedral of St. Joseph. Our wedding was providentially in 2021, which Pope Francis declared a special “Year of St. Joseph.” And, as we prepared for marriage, we dedicated our family to him, using the consecration written by Dr. Greggory Bottaro and Jennifer Settle.
St. Joseph’s intercession has seen us through four moves in less than four years of marriage, many job changes, and a beautiful pregnancy with our son. Discovering the cloak, after all that he has done for our family, feels like finding my father’s favorite winter coat deep in the hall closet. Just like the coat might bring up memories of snow days or trips home for Christmas, St. Joseph’s cloak reminds me of his journeys protecting and providing for the Holy Family — as well as our own.
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Now when we encounter challenges as a family, we not only ask for St. Joseph’s intercession, we imagine him sheltering us with his cloak. Through the relics of the saints, we have tangible reminders that our faith is not just a spiritual one — it has a physical reality as well. These relics are the Church’s “family heirlooms,” and they connect us to the men and women who have gone before us in pursuit of Christ.
