Friday, September 14, 2012

Work Hard to Make Work Holy


In 1891, at the beginning of the industrialization of society, Pope Leo XIII wrote an encyclical titled Rerum Novarum (“On capital and labor”).

This encyclical has been seen as so important that it has been revised every decade by each pope since 1931, and Pope John Paul II updated the encyclical on its 100-year anniversary in 1991.
This instruction has laid the foundation for the fifth principle of Catholic social teaching that is referred to as “the dignity of work and the rights of workers.”

Pope Leo XIII explained that work is seen as much more than a way to make a living; it is a form of continuing participation in God’s creation. The encyclical rejects socialism and instead asks for justice.

We are called to do what we can to ensure the protection of the dignity of work, as well as to respect the basic rights of workers. Further, we are instructed that everyone has a right to productive work, to decent and fair wages, to organize and join unions, and to own private property.

The theory and practical implications are that when people are given work that fulfills them, and in which they have some input, it enhances their human dignity. To feel valued is one of the most basic of all human needs.

Workers should not be misused as things to pursue profit. The good of their souls must be considered as business decisions are made.

There are many examples of corporations that work hard to strike a balance between making a profit and caring for their workers, the environment, and society in general. These companies should be held out as models of what is possible, good, and right.

When Pope Leo XIII published his encyclical over 120 years ago, he could never have imagined the tremendous power wielded by huge multinational corporations and the ultra-wealthy. And he never could have imagined the mass consumerism that has gripped many nations—most notably the United States.

All of us need to be a voice crying out in the wilderness to ask the tough questions of our employers about how decisions made by companies will affect workers, and to do what we can to influence public policy that supports and sustains employees who are vulnerable to abuse.

Let’s work hard to make work holy.

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Follow the Leader…to the Poor and Vulnerable



In the Gospel of Matthew, we find the well-known, powerful truth that whatever we do to or for those considered by society as the “least among us,” we do to or for Jesus.

Throughout the Gospels, Jesus identifies himself again and again with the lepers, the orphaned, the widowed, the stranger, the lost, the lonely and all those rejected by society. He tells us that when we reach out to these vulnerable people, we are sharing the very essence of who God is: love.

This principle is summarized in our Catholic social teaching with the statement that we are to have a “preferential option for the poor and vulnerable.”

Several years ago Father Larry Snyder, president of Catholic Charities USA, returned from a trip to the Vatican, where he met with his peers from throughout the world who oversee their country’s charitable efforts administered in the name of the Church.

Father Snyder shared the story of being told several times that he must feel lucky overseeing charity in the U.S. since we do not really have any poor people.

If only this were true. Currently in the United States, 46.2 million people live below the official poverty line – that’s nearly 1 in six Americans. More than half of the world’s population lives on less than $2 per day, and more than 1.2 billion people live on less than $1 a day.

But it certainly could be true. Through serving the needs of the most vulnerable, we bring them hope. And hope shines a light into the soul, making room for God to make a home and dwell there.
Jesus, our leader, certainly demonstrated a preference for the poor. Let’s play follow the leader.