It has been said that somewhere, buried deep in Bethlehem, is the body of an over 2,000 year-old man. Still intact and incorrupt, frozen in time.<\/p>\n
This body is said to belong to Saint Joseph, husband of Mary and foster father of Jesus.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnly a few men followed the coffin with Jesus and Mary, but I saw it accompanied by angels and environed with light. Joseph\u2019s remains were afterward removed by the Christians to Bethlehem and interred. I think I can still see him lying there incorrupt.\u201d<\/p>\n
If this is indeed true, in a world covered with dark ashes of doubt, faithlessness, and immorality, this tremendous discovery might just be our phoenix. But whence do the clues to unearthing this hidden gem come?<\/p>\n
Herein lies the secret:\u00a0in the old, forgotten visions of Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich<\/a>\u00a0(1774-1824) \u2013 a German mystic, stigmatist, and one of the greatest visionaries in the history of the Church.<\/p>\n Her visions on the most intimate parts of the lives of Jesus, Mary, and the Saints brought their extraordinary stories to life, like supernatural characters leaping off the page of a book.<\/p>\n Despite Anne\u2019s never having visited the Holy Land in her lifetime, those who have journeyed there are often stunned by the striking resemblance between her descriptions and the actual sites and monuments.<\/p>\n Although Anne could not write what she had witnessed, given her poor education, she earned the respect of a distinguished German Romantic poet, Clemens Brentano, who regularly sat at her bedside to transcribe her exultant recounts.<\/p>\n He published her extraordinary visions on the life of Christ in one of Emmerich-Brentano\u2019s most prized books,\u00a0The Dolorous Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ<\/a>\u00a0(1883) \u2013 the same book that inspired Mel Gibson\u2019s film\u00a0The Passion of the Christ,\u00a0because of its sheer detail on the Gospel stories.<\/p>\n Some know Anne\u2019s extraordinary story, but most do not. It is only fitting that it be revived.<\/p>\n Emmerich was born at Flamske in Westphalia, Germany, on Sept. 8, 1774, to poor, devout parents. As a child, Emmerich could discern whether objects were consecrated or not and which saint a certain relic belonged to.<\/p>\n In the dark of night, she often walked barefoot on the snow, defying piercing winds, so that she could make the entire Way of the Cross to Coesfeld. She preferred to eat leftover scraps and often gave her food to the poor and sick so they would not starve. She barely slept.<\/p>\n When she was 29, she became a nun of the Augustinian Order at Dulmen, Westphalia.<\/p>\n One day, whilst praying for hours before the crucifix at St. Lambert, Coesfeld, Anne\u00a0begged Jesus\u00a0to let her share in His Passion. Several years later, on Dec. 29, 1812, at 3:00 p.m., whilst bedridden and extremely ill, she\u00a0experienced the stigmata.<\/p>\n Doctors had no medical explanation for her wounds.<\/p>\n Pope St. John Paul II beatified Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich on Oct. 3, 2004.\u00a0<\/p>\n He said in his homily: <\/p>\n \u201cThe fact that the daughter of poor peasants who sought tenaciously to be close to God became the well-known \u2018Mystic of the Land of M\u00fcnster\u2019 was a work of divine grace. Her material poverty contrasted with her rich interior life.\u201d<\/p>\n Some question the credibility of her writings, given Clemens Brentano\u2019s embellishments, as well as her negative portrayal of the Jewish mobs who condemned Jesus to death.<\/p>\n Nevertheless, the editor of TAN Books, Dr. Paul Thigpen, said that we ought to be inspired by her unwavering holiness in the face of adversity more than by her visions.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat the Church is focusing on is\u00a0her heroic suffering,\u00a0offering up that suffering to God\u2026If she is canonized, she would be a wonderful role model for the disabled and those with chronic illness.\u201d<\/p>\n Anne\u2019s visions have already\u00a0led to the discovery<\/a>\u00a0of the Blessed Virgin Mary\u2019s house in Ephesus, Turkey.<\/p>\n So, what about Saint Joseph\u2019s body?<\/p>\n In the Gospels, we barely hear a spoken word from Saint Joseph. He was a man of silence and complete humility. <\/p>\n Father Paul of Mill (1824-1896) once said, <\/p>\n \u201cIn an ecstasy, a saint has seen the body of Saint Joseph preserved intact in a tomb, the site of which is yet unknown. The more the glorious spouse of the most Blessed Virgin is honored, the sooner will the finding of his body take place, which will be a day of great joy for the Church.\u201d<\/p>\n If Anne\u2019s visions have led to such mind-blowing breakthroughs, what makes us think the incorrupt body of Saint Joseph \u2013 one of the greatest saints of all time \u2013 isn\u2019t waiting to be found?<\/p>\n \tShare this post<\/p>\n \t\t<\/a> \t\tThe link has been copied!<\/p>\n \t
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