New from Kenmare Press, just in time for the end of the Year of St. Joseph … My Friend Joe: Reflections on St. Joseph, by Susan Rose Francois, CSJP (yours truly).
The idea for this book first came to me through photography. Each reflection, in fact, was inspired by a photo I took of St. Joseph, or rather, a photo of an artist’s imaginative rendering of him.
As I have looked for Joseph, my imagination has been sparked not only by the statue or image, but by his surroundings, the world around him. These scenes have inspired my reflections in this book, imagining how St. Joseph relates with us, advocates for us, and prays for us today through the interplay of his image and the story of life and faith taking place among us today.
All photographs were taken by Susan Rose Francois, CSJP. Digital copies of the photographs are available here for personal use.
Statue of St. Joseph and Jesus in front of AMITA St. Joseph Hospital, on the shores of Lake Michigan in Chicago, Illinois. Photo by Susan Rose Francois, CSJP. (Creative Commons 4.0)Statue of St. Joseph overlooking an evergreen tree, which is adorned with decorative Christmas lights, outside Bon Secours Retreat and Conference Center, Marriottsville, Maryland. Photo by Susan Rose Francois, CSJP. (Creative Commons 4.0)Statue of St. Joseph the Worker with a carpenter’s van parked in the background, outside Holy Name Medical Center, Teaneck, New Jersey. Photo by Susan Rose Francois, CSJP. (Creative Commons 4.0)Wooden statue of St. Joseph from the American Southwest, taken in the room of Sister Susan Dewitt at Gaffney Hall, St. Mary-on-the-Lake, Bellevue, WA. Photo by Susan Rose Francois, CSJP. (Creative Commons 4.0)Statue of St. Joseph with flowers, in the corner of the chapel at the CSJP house on Walm Lane, London, England. Photo by Susan Rose Francois, CSJP. (Creative Commons 4.0)Small statue of St. Joseph with cermaic container in front parlor of Mater Dei Convent, Englewood Cliffs, NJ. Photo by Susan Rose Francois, CSJP. (Creative Commons 4.0)Stained glass window behind the altar at St. Joseph Chapel, St. Joseph Village, Chicago, IL. Photo by Susan Rose Francois, CSJP. (Creative Commons 4.0)St. Joseph watching the forest at St. Mary-on-the-Lake, Bellevue, WA. Photo by Susan Rose Francois, CSJP. (Creative Commons 4.0)Marble wall relief of the Holy Family’s Flight to Egypt, St. Hugh’s Catholic Church, Lincoln, England. Photo by Susan Rose Francois, CSJP. (Creative Commons 4.0)Budding sprintime flowers with St. Joseph statue in the background, outside St. Michael Villa, Englewood Cliffs, NJ. Photo by Susan Rose Francois, CSJP. (Creative Commons 4.0)
At the Corner of Susan and St. Joseph 