Prayer
for the Day
O
Saint Joseph, we pray to you for those who are out of work, for those who want
to earn their living or support their families.
You
who are the patron of workers; grant that unemployment may vanish from our
ranks; that all those who are ready to work may put their strength and
abilities in serving their fellowmen and earn a just salary.
You
are the patron of families; do not let those who have children to support and
raise lack the necessary means. Have pity on our brothers and sisters held down
in unemployment and poverty because of sickness or social disorders. Help our
political leaders and captains of industry find new and just solutions. May
each and every one have the joy of contributing, according to his abilities, to
the common prosperity by an honorable livelihood. Grant that we may all share
together in the abundant goods God has given us and that we may help
underprivileged countries. Amen.
Reflection
Here we are again;
Labor Day in the U.S., a day to honor the goodness of work. Isn’t it timely
that Luke has Jesus curing the man with the withered hand on the Sabbath, a day
of rest? It brings up questions among the scribes and Pharisees about the
appropriateness of Jesus “working” on the Sabbath. (Luke 6:6-11) Is there an appropriate time for prayer and
healing???? I say the answer to that
question is, “Every waking moment.”
Paul speaks of the
mystery of Christ in us. (Colossians 1:24–2:3)
It is God’s energy within us that helps us to “do good work” at any
time. The best “good work” I can think
of is prayer for those who are suffering, either physically or
emotionally. And there are plenty of
both types of suffering due to the high unemployment rate in the US.
The Psalmist prays:
"only in God will my soul be at rest…”
(Psalm 62:6-7, 9) So true.
Labor Day in the US is
supposed to be a day of rest and celebration.
Many Americans probably feel there is nothing to celebrate, considering
the high unemployment rate we are experiencing. To those I say, “Take
heart! God will triumph!” Take your needs to Him through Jesus
Christ.
His Excellency Stephen
Blaire, the Bishop of the Diocese of Stockton CA (my own diocese) is the
chairman of the Bishop’s Conference Committee on Domestic Justice and Human
Development.
A statement was
released by that committee today, dated September 5, 2011.
Here is the concluding statement:
For Christians, it is
not enough to acknowledge current difficulties. We are people of hope,
committed to prayer, to help those facing hard time and to work with others to
build a better economy. Our faith gives strength, direction and confidence in
these tasks. As Pope Benedict encourages us:
On this earth there is
room for everyone: here the entire human family must find the resources to live
with dignity, through the help of nature itself--God’s gift to his children--and
through hard work and creativity (Caritas in Veritate, no. 50).
We must remember that
at the heart of everything we do as believers must be love, for it is love
which honors the dignity of work as participation in the act of God’s creation,
and it is love which values the dignity of the worker, not just for the work he
or she does, but above all for the person he or she is. This call of love is
also a work of faith and an expression of hope.
On this Labor Day in
2011, in the midst of continuing economic turmoil, we are called to renew our
commitment to the God-given task of defending human life and dignity,
celebrating work, and defending workers with both hope and conviction. This is
a time for prayer, reflection, and action. In the words of our Holy Father Pope
Benedict XVI:
The current crisis
obliges us to re-plan our journey, to set ourselves new rules and to discover
new forms of commitment, to build on positive experiences and to reject
negatives ones. The crisis thus becomes an opportunity for discernment, in
which to shape a new vision for the future (Caritas in Veritate, no. 21).
Read the entire
statement here.
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