Today we enter into "Labor Day", an official holiday established legally in 1894 to recognize the benefit and dignity of work and labor and its transformative role in the lives of Americans.
With unemployment on the rise, or least at an all time high, Labor Day for many is a mute point. Because work has been mishandle by many as means just to make money at the expense of those who work, many have lost sight of the dignity of work.
This happens when we focus too much on the dignity of work and not enough on the dignity of the worker.
We must begin our celebration first and foremost with the recognition of the dignity of the worker, only then can work and labor truly be transformative.
Today we also celebrate the memorial of Blessed Frederick Ozanam.
Frederick was a young man who lived in the 19th century in France. He became a stanch defender of the faith, especially in his university classes to his professors.
He started a club that enabled young people to get together and discuss their beliefs amongst one another. One day in this club a question was posed to him that stung him deeply, "What do you do besides talk to prove the faith you claim is in you?"
What do you do besides talk to prove the faith you claim is in you?
This question led him to found the St. Vincent de Paul Society dedicated to assisting and helping the poor and working class.
Like the scribes and Pharisees in today's gospel seeking to "discover a reason to accuse" Jesus, do men and women discover a reason in our lives to accuse us of of being faithful.
"what do we do to prove the faith we claim is in us?
Or do we just simply build our alibi in hopes to get off scott free.
St. Paul tells us, "I am filling up what is lacking in the affliction of Christ on behalf of his body the Church...for this I labor and struggle, in accord with the exercise of his power working within me...that we may present everyone perfect in Christ...to bring to completion for you the word of God...that we might be brought together in love."
No comments:
Post a Comment