The Quiet Saint

Joseph of Nazareth is spectacularly ordinary, but there’s something special about this “average Joe.”

There’s a placeholder we use in our culture to describe an ordinary man: “average Joe.” It’s a phrase that rolls off the tongue easily, a way of describing someone who is unremarkable or an “everyman.”

When we talk about “the average Joe,” we may picture a face in the crowd, blending into the rhythm of everyday life. But not all Joes are average. Take Joe DiMaggio, for example, whose 56-game hitting streak still stands as one of baseball’s records. He wasn’t just another player. He was a legend who left an indelible mark on the sport and was even immortalized by Simon and Garfunkel in song. They wondered, “Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio?” — as if the absence of such greatness left a gap in the world.

Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio?
A nation turns its lonely eyes to you
Woo, woo, woo
What’s that you say, Mrs. Robinson?
Joltin’ Joe has left and gone away

He’s not the only Joe who...