Dear Friends,
I am in Chicago this weekend officiating at the wedding of the daughter of a friend of mine. However, I am with you
in prayer and thought this holiday weekend.
Labor Day reminds me of our interconnectedness; we need one another in order to survive. Here in Nebraska we
know well that even the simple can of corn you pull from the grocery store shelf has thousands of people standing
behind it. From those who stock the shelves to the truckers who transport the product to the store; from the
warehouse workers to the rail operators who supply the warehouse; from the farmers to the granary workers. There
are others such as those who supply fertilizers that aid in growth and those who developed innumerable agricultural
technologies. This does not even begin to deal with the number of workers needed to create the can that the corn is
placed in. The list of people who have worked so that you can buy a can of corn at the store is almost endless.
On Labor Day, it seems good to reflect on some teachings about human labor from the Catechism of the Catholic
Church:
- Human labor precedes Original Sin and hence is not an imposition due to sin but rather part of our
original dignity.
God places Adam and Eve in the garden. There he lives “to till it and keep it.” Work is not yet a burden, but rather
the collaboration of man and woman with God in perfecting the visible creation (CCC #378).
Note that our dignity is that we are to work with God to perfect creation. Adam and Eve were told by God to fill the
earth and subdue it. Man and woman did have work to do, but it was not experienced as a burden. Only after
Original Sin did work come to be perceived as a burden. - Human work is a duty and prolongs the work of creation.
Human work proceeds directly from persons created in the image of God and called to prolong the work of creation
by subduing the earth, both with and for one another. Hence work is a duty: “If anyone will not work, let him not
eat.” Work honors the Creator’s gifts and the talents received from him (CCC #2427). - Work can be sanctifying and redemptive.
Work can also be redemptive. By enduring the hardship of work in union with Jesus, the carpenter of Nazareth and
the one crucified on Calvary, man collaborates in a certain fashion with the Son of God in his redemptive work. He
shows himself to be a disciple of Christ by carrying the cross, daily, in the work he is called to accomplish. Work can
be a means of sanctification and a way of animating earthly realities with the Spirit of Christ (CCC #2427). - Work is an acceptable sacrifice to God.
The laity, dedicated as they are to Christ and anointed by the Holy Spirit, are marvelously called and prepared so that
even richer fruits of the Spirit may be produced in them. For all their works, prayers, and apostolic undertakings,
family and married life, daily work, relaxation of mind and body, if they are accomplished in the Spirit—indeed even
the hardships of life if patiently borne—all these become spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
In the celebration of the Eucharist these may most fittingly be offered to the Father along with the body of the
Lord (CCC # 901). - To work is to participate in the common good.
Participation is achieved first of all by taking charge of the areas for which one assumes personal responsibility: by
the care taken for the education of his family, by conscientious work, and so forth, man participates in the good of
others and of society (CCC # 1914).
The key word throughout seems to be dignity. Human work proceeds from our dignity as collaborators with God in
perfecting and completing the work of creation. Everyone can work and should do so in the ways possible for him or
her, not merely out of a sense of duty but also because it is the essence of dignity.
Happy Labor Day all you who labor!
Peace,
Fr. Damian