St. Joseph Marello, A Man of Virtue

Holiness is the personal relationship of grace lived by constantly seeking to choose to be good and do the good, in imitation of Christ. The great philosophers of ancient times were able to perceive that man was made for goodness and that a

consistent choice of what is good is what is most able to fully realize a person and bring him happiness. They called these consistent choices of good, virtue, and created quite elaborate presentations of what were the qualities of goodness that were most important to our human nature.

As Christians, we have been able to see two things: first, that the ancients were in fact accurate in what makes a person good for it corresponds entirely with what God Himself has revealed as constituting the goodness man was created for; second, that man on his own, though created for and disposed to this goodness, is incapable of fully achieving it due to the effects of Original Sin. Because of this rupture, inborn in human nature since Adam and Eve, man constantly experiences the frustration of being called to goodness and not

being able to achieve it - in fact man is ever likely to give into the opposite of virtue, vice, which degrades and ultimately condemns the person to a state of eternal loss. It was specifically to save man from this, rescue him from eternal loss and restore to him the full possibility of goodness that the Son of God became man, offered His life in atonement on the Cross, rose from the dead and ascended into Heaven, thus re-establishing the personal relationship with Him that is the vital key to returning to man the ability to pursue virtue to its fullness. For the baptized Christian, where the personal relationship with God that we call grace exists, the work of Christian life consist in the ongoing task of building virtue in himself, helping others to do so, and seeking to promote a world that makes this possible.

Marello, dedicated to a close study of the Word of God and the example of the Saints, understood this completely. It was the perspective that he was brought up with in his early catechism and which continued to form the core of his formation as a seminarian and later his evangelizing work as a Priest and Bishop. His

writings, and the recollections of those who knew him, are filled with references to the life of virtue in general and to many specific individual virtues and their cultivation as well. They are the categories in which he thought, prayed and lived. For Marello, his pursuit of holiness is inseparably linked to growth in virtue. For

him, it is clear that you cannot be an authentic follower of Christ if you are not seeking to harmonize your life with Him by means of the virtues that imitate Him and please Him.

However, Marello also realized that virtue is something to cultivate. One does not start out with virtue, but only the capacity to attain them. You need to deliberately make choices, usually what tested and challenged, as well as by personal and private re-affirmation (morning offerings, acts of consecration, vows…), each of

which contributes a step of growth in virtue. Each individual virtue is a specific cultivation, although they usually and helpfully, grow together Growth is gradual - something Marello also knew, and to which he applied himself throughout his life, but also in which he gently and patiently encouraged others in the confessional and in the course of his spiritual direction and even through his letters to friends and to

our First Confreres. Progress in virtue is possible, desirable and necessary - for the lack of progress is often the sign of the opposite dynamic - you can erode virtue by failing to make efforts to grow, even without acting against it. Thus Marello urged perseverance, even in small ways, to preserve and enhance one’s virtue. In this he certainly was inspired by his patron St. Joseph, the Saint of quiet but tenacious perseverance in growing in union with Jesus, the Saint of virtue lived in its fullest next to Mary, the Immaculate and perfect follower of Christ.

Marello often spoke of various individual virtues. He clearly saw some as key to others, just as the Saints he studied did, and his own experience showed him. He spoke of these virtues most often: humility - the virtue of restraining of pride and self-centeredness that undermine true virtue, and instead remaining open and

disposed to God’s working in your life; meekness - the virtue of restraining one’s impulsive reactions so as to be able to act more thoughtfully and in genuine goodness; patience - the virtue of exercising forbearance of difficulties and remaining committed to the slow and gradual process of growth and conversion; prudence - the virtue of constantly seeking to exercise good judgment according to sound principles before making decisions. To these may be added a couple of virtues that many saw in him: equanimity of spirit - the virtue of inner self control and tranquility; the passionate love of Christ that shown in his words and deeds, and which moved him to great compassion for souls. These virtues might not be deemed the most exalted, like Faith, Hope and Charity, yet they are the humble, hidden virtues (the virtues of St. Joseph!) that form the foundation of the greater ones.

Fr. Gregory Finn, OSJ

General Councilor