Theology is “the science of God and divine things.”

Mariology is “the theological study of Mary.”

Josephology is “the theological study of Joseph.” 

A new epoch on learning more about St. Joseph has opened — with the launch of the Josephology Society International last October.

“Devotion to St. Joseph is growing and has been for many years, fueled by the teaching of the popes,” said Mike Aquilina, author of more than 70 books and host and co-host of a popular EWTN TV series. “The more we know about this great man, the more we’ll love him. This society will promote such knowledge all over the world.”

The society came about thanks to the inspiration of Father Edward Looney, a priest in the Diocese of Green Bay, Wisconsin, whose study of Mary prompted him to study Joseph, too. 

“The Josephology Society International has been a vision I’ve carried in my heart for over a decade,” Father Looney told the Register. 

“As a Marian theologian, I see Josephology as closely related to Mariology,” explained the priest, who is also an author, social-media evangelist and past president of the Mariological Society of America. 

“By studying Joseph, we naturally find ourselves drawn to Jesus and Mary, but with new and profound insights. Christology and Mariology complement Josephology,” added the Josephology Society’s founder.

Charter member Marian Father Donald Calloway, of the Marians of the Immaculate Conception and author of Consecration to St. Joseph, told the Register about the need for the new society. “We haven’t really had intense, what’s called Josephology studies until modern times. There’s still so much to unpack, to discover about the greatness, the privileges, the titles, the wonders of St. Joseph, that we’ve basically got a lot of catching up to do — almost 2,000 years.”

Father Looney’s dream to form this new society to bring together scholars, theologians, clergy, consecrated religious and laity from around the world to promote the study of St. Joseph and lead to a deeper appreciation for Jesus’ loving father and Mary’s chaste husband began more than a decade ago.

“My personal interest in Josephology dates back to my time in the seminary. I was doing an independent study on the marriage of Joseph and Mary. That led to a long paper on it,” Father Looney explained to the Register. While studying many texts on St. Joseph, the vision took hold. “There was this classic article on Josephology that I had read as part of that study, and it detailed some of the Josephology societies. Even then I just thought it was a shame that the Josephology societies of the world no longer existed.”

During the Year of St. Joseph, which ran Dec. 8, 2020, to 8 Dec. 8, 2021, Father Looney recorded Cup of St. Joe, a podcast on St. Joseph, where he interviewed almost 50 guests. That brought him into contact with many St. Joseph devotees, including John Lewis, “a very impassioned layman. He had started a Josephology group on Facebook and was doing his own little Josephology show on YouTube.”

The society then took shape with 16 charter members, including Aquilina, Lewis, Father Calloway, Scott Hahn, Benedictine Father Boniface Hicks, Deacon Mark Miravalle, theologian Robert Fastiggi, Renee LeBoeuf, and Father Joseph Chorpenning of the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales.

Josephology Rises

Only in the last 160 years or so has Josephology blossomed, with such papal writings as Pope Leo XIII’s 1889 encyclical Quamquam Pluries (“On Devotion to St. Joseph”), continuing through subsequent popes to Francis’ Patris Corde (“On the 150th Anniversary of the Proclamation of St. Joseph as Patron of the Universal Church”). 

“We have so much about Our Lord, of course, Our Lady, and so many saints, but St. Joseph has been rather neglected,” said Father Calloway. “I think it’s amazing that his time has finally come to really go deeper into him, and I think the society will do that. In a certain sense, I think it’s almost a fruit of the Year of St. Joseph, that now there’s such an interest in him.”

To fan this interest, this new society aims to unite Christian scholars and theologians worldwide to study and communicate St. Joseph’s role in God’s plan of salvation history. There will be an annual gathering or symposium; the first one on March 20 will be online, featuring an array of speakers. God willing, said Father Looney, it will be in person in the near future at shrines where St. Joseph is honored. Then the yearly periodical Josephology Studies will publish related scholarship “to make it accessible,” according to Father Looney. 

Although this is a scholarly society, Father Looney hopes and envisions it will touch not just scholars but all the faithful, to grow in devotion to St. Joseph. 

The same holds true for charter member Renee LeBoeuf, member of the administrative council and moderator of the (non-connected) Josephology Facebook page. “Through learning, researching and experiencing St. Joseph, we will understand the timeless and eternal role of St. Joseph,” she explained to the Register. “He is the ultimate example of the strongest possible commitment to family, faith and fatherhood.” She finds this “perfect timing,” she added, “because of the relentless attack on the family today” and hopes the society will “spread the scholarly discoveries and personal traits lived by St. Joseph to enhance everyone’s life.”

Personally,  Father Looney hopes “to write a piece for Josephology studies on the role of St. Joseph in the writings of Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich or [Venerable] Maria of Agreda. These are devotional works that people have read.” The piece will “see what the mystics said about his role and what that translates and means today.” He added that “there are countless saints who wrote about St. Joseph. We even see St. Joseph present in apparitions, like Fatima. But there are other apparitions where St. Joseph appeared as well.”

“Hopefully,” he added, “through our formal study of St. Joseph, we can make St. Joseph understandable to others.”

Bountiful Hopes

Although it is too early to say how the studies will filter down to everyone, Father Calloway says that “getting to know Joseph” will bless all involved, to “bring that knowledge to people on a simple level so that they can know him and love him. It’s basically theology on our knees, getting to know and love St. Joseph.” 

Father Calloway emphasized, “Anybody can join — from a grandma to teenagers to academic theologians in any culture, anywhere. We want as many people to be involved as possible.” 

“There’s room for everybody,” Father Looney added. “Of course, we want to form devotees of St. Joseph. So, if you are just praying a prayer to St. Joseph every day, we want to feed you and nourish you a little more and give you more food for thought and enrich your own meditation, too.”

LEARN MORE

This first free symposium will be online March 20, 2025, 5-10 p.m. EDT, with the theme, “Joseph: Beacon of Hope for the Pilgrim Church.” Register at JosephologySociety.com. In addition, Father Looney may be reached for further inquiries at [email protected].