In Barcelona, Spain, a beautiful place of devotion stands atop a mountain: the Royal Sanctuary of Saint Joseph of the Mountain.
This sanctuary is the first in the world dedicated to Saint Joseph, the adoptive father of Jesus.
The history of this sanctuary is deeply linked to the life of Blessed Petra de San José, the founder of the Congregation of Mothers of the Helpless and Saint Joseph of the Mountain.
Her unwavering faith in the chaste husband of the Virgin Mary inspired the construction of this monument.
In 1890, Blessed Petra de San José's community was in a difficult situation. When the lease on their home ended, the owner said they must buy the property or leave. However, the congregation did not have enough money.
The sisters searched unsuccessfully for a new home without any results. So Mother Petra traveled from Valencia to Barcelona to deal with the situation.
Upon arrival, the first thing she did was pray to Saint Joseph. Upon leaving, when asked what the saint said, she confidently replied that Saint Joseph would fix everything.
The congregation states on its website,
“They entered the chapel to give thanks to Saint Joseph, and something truly surprising happened. They noticed that the head of the image had gently leaned towards the place where Mother Petra had been praying. This led them to consider this image miraculous."
Days later, a young woman came to the house looking for Mother Petra. The caretaker told her that no one from the community was there because they were doing spiritual exercises.
“When you finish, please give her this card and tell her that I would like to speak with her about donating a property that belongs to me,” she asked before leaving.
The young woman was Carmen Masferrer, who had decided to donate some land on the “Montaña Pelada." The place was large but rocky and difficult to access. But that would not stop the future blessed from building the great project: a home for orphan girls and a sanctuary dedicated to Saint Joseph.
On Aug. 14, 1895, the first stone of the Royal Sanctuary of San José de la Montaña was laid, and its inauguration took place on April 20, 1902.
The Sanctuary gained fame thanks to the image of Saint Joseph, located in a chapel at the entrance.
The miracles associated with the saint quickly spread the devotion and soon people began to bring him letters with their requests.
“A lady who had to have her hand amputated went up to pray before the saint and left a written note with her request at his feet. A few days later, she returned completely cured and the news spread like wildfire and people came frequently calling him 'Saint Joseph of the Mountain', a name that stuck with him forever, as did the tradition of making requests in writing,” the congregation said.
“Currently, this sanctuary receives letters of petition from many parts of the world, which are offered and burned in an act called burning of letters to Saint Joseph of the Mountain."