Marian Helper Spring 2014

M arian H elper • S pring 2014 •  www.marian.org 15 G erald and Ann Marie Johnston know what it means to suffer tragic loss and shocking betrayal. Within a three- month span in 2001, their 22-year-old son, Matthew, died unexpectedly from a heart con- dition and their 16-year-old daughter, Faith, revealed a priest had raped her. Twelve years later, sharing these pain- ful experiences in their home in Haverhill, Mass., Gerald and Ann Marie explain how, in no small way, St. Joseph has served as their comforter, friend, and role model. It was his example, born of trust in God, that helped build the Johnstons’ resolve to serve Christ and His Church at a time when others might have become embittered and left the faith. “Saint Joseph was helping us through the grief of dealing with Matthew’s death and then the ordeal of a criminal trial,” Ann Marie says. “At the time, we didn’t really know what was going on around us.” What we know of St. Joseph At times over-sentimentalized, at times overlooked, St. Joseph stands as an elusive figure in Scripture. “We don’t know a lot about him, but what little we know is profound,” says Gerald, a convert to Catholicism who chose Joseph as his Confirmation name. A carpenter by trade, a man of modest means, St. Joseph was chosen by God to be head of the household for the Holy Family and, eventually, Patron of the universal Church. We also know that St. Joseph, whose feast day we celebrate March 19, lives up to his reputation as “comforter of the afflicted,” “protector of families,” and “patron of a happy death” — three roles to which the Johnstons can attest. “I’ve been in situations in my life,” says Gerald, “where I have asked myself, ‘Well, what would St. Joseph have done?’” So what would St. Joseph have done in the case of a son’s untimely death? What would he have done after a daughter fell prey to a sexual predator posing as a shepherd of souls? He would do everything he could to love and safeguard them, first and foremost. Then, Through tragedy, loss, and even betrayal, Ann Marie and Gerald Johnston continue to hold St. Joseph near. This statue serves as a reminder to them of the saint who faced uncertainties as he sought to do God’s will. F elix C arroll A saint who struggled like us How St. Joseph can help us through the hard times. by Felix Carroll Continued on page 18