News

Parishes set up St. Joseph Altars to honor saint of the day

March 19, 2025

by Susan Szalewski

Altars have been established, tables laid out.

They’re covered with breads, fruits, pasta, canned goods and other food and decorated with beautiful white lilies, candles, holy images and pages of prayers of thanksgiving and petition.

The altars, in honor of St. Joseph, originated in Sicily in the Middle Ages and have become an annual tradition in Italy and elsewhere, including several parishes in the Archdiocese of Omaha. For the March 19 Solemnity of St. Joseph, people bring their gifts for the poor along with prayers of intercession, paying tribute to the powerful saint who became the spouse of the Virgin Mary and the earthly father of Christ.

For the St. Joseph Altar at Mary Our Queen Parish in Omaha, parishioners have been able to drop off donations for Catholic Charities. RENEE SPICKA/MARY OUR QUEEN PARISH

“Whether a St. Joseph Altar is an elaborate display at an elegant church or a humble table in a modest home, it is a reflection of a deep devotion to St. Joseph, the patron of those in need – workers, travelers, the persecuted, the poor, the aged, the dying,” according to information provided by the Legion of Mary at Mary Our Queen Parish in Omaha. The group set up an altar at the parish, where people could drop off donations for those in need, as well as religious images and decorations.

This year, because of blizzard conditions in northeast Nebraska, Mary Our Queen had to postpone at least part of its St. Joseph celebration.

A Mass for some of Mary Our Queen School students and their grandparents was rescheduled to March 20. A blessing of the St. Joseph Altar will follow the Mass.

Both the parish and school have been collecting food and monetary donations for Catholic Charities of Omaha as part of its St. Joseph Altar tradition.

The parish’s Legion of Mary presidium – named for Mary, Lady of All Nations – has organized the St. Joseph Altar for the past five years or so. Last year, that effort led to two carloads of food delivered to Catholic Charities from Mary Our Queen.

The organization also led a St. Joseph novena leading up to this year’s solemnity, said Lori Hamilton, president of the Legion of Mary presidium.

St. Mary Parish in Wayne is another parish celebrating and honoring St. Joseph. St. Mary’s pastor, Father Matthew Capadano, has a special love for the St. Joseph events because of his Italian heritage.

“The Solemnity of Saint Joseph is for Italians like St. Patrick’s Day is for the Irish,” said Father Capadano, who leads the Immaculate Conception Family of Parishes, which also includes parishes in Laurel and Dixon.

St. Mary in Wayne has had its St. Joseph Table set up in the back of church since Feb. 19, a month before the solemnity. People were invited to bring to the table food pantry donations. The parish’s new Legion of Mary presidium organized the project with help from St. Mary’s Knights of Columbus Council.

The parish also invited everyone to a celebration of St. Joseph on the evening of March 22, where they can share their favorite Italian dishes and play bingo as part of the event.