St. John Chrysostom said, “Mary was espoused to a carpenter, because Jesus, the Spouse of the Church, was to work the salvation of the world by the wood of the Cross.”
In the encyclical Divini Redemptoris, Pope Pius XI wrote, “To hasten the advent of that ‘peace of Christ in the kingdom of Christ’ so ardently desired by all, We entrust the vast campaign of the Church against world Communism under the standard of St. Joseph, Her mighty Protector. He belongs to the working-class, and he bore the burdens of poverty for himself and the Holy Family, whose tender and vigilant head he was.”
On May 1, 1955, Pope Pius XII declared May 1 to be the liturgical feast of St. Joseph the Worker. He wrote: “We are happy to announce to you our determination to institute – as in fact we do institute – the liturgical feast of St. Joseph the Worker, assigning it as the first day of May. Are you pleased with this our gift, beloved workers? We are certain that you are, because the humble workman of Nazareth not only personifies before God and the Church the dignity of the man who works with his hands, but is always the provident guardian of you and your families.”
St. Josemaría Escrivá recalled: “Like all Christians at that time, I too was happy and grateful at the Church’s decision to declare a liturgical feast in honor of St. Joseph the Worker. This feast, which ratifies the divine value of work, shows how the Church publicly echoes central truths of the Gospel which God wishes men to meditate on, especially in our own time.”
St. Josemaría loved to repeat: “Sanctify yourself in your work, sanctify your work, and sanctify others in your work.”
In the apostolic exhortation Redemptoris Custos, St. John Paul II wrote, “Work was the daily expression of love in the life of the Family of Nazareth. The Gospel specifies the kind of work Joseph did in order to support his family: he was a carpenter. This simple word sums up Joseph’s entire life…. In our own day, the Church has emphasized this by instituting the liturgical memorial of St. Joseph the Worker on May 1. Human work, and especially manual labor, receive special prominence in the Gospel. Along with the humanity of the Son of God, work too has been taken up in the mystery of the Incarnation, and has also been redeemed in a special way.”
Mother Cecelia Baij wrote, “Saint Joseph performed all his work exceptionally well, and everybody was always impressed by it. Joseph only took what was offered to him for his labour. He left the amount of pay up to them, and he received it from them with thanks, as if it were a gift rather than payment owed to him. … In his little workshop, Joseph would always make time for prayer and would often lower himself to the ground and make a complete oblation of himself to God.”
In recent times, the statue of “Sleeping St. Joseph” has become popular in the Church, and Pope Francis keeps one on his desk.
Father Donald Calloway wrote, “The sleep of St. Joseph can teach modern man important lessons about life. One of the most important lessons it teaches us is that it is okay to rest. Being a workaholic is never a good thing. Saint Joseph was not a workaholic. He liked to sleep. Sleep refreshed his soul. God communicated with St. Joseph when he slept, and he was a holier husband and father because of it. You are not wasting time when you rest. Sleep is pleasing to God. God will speak to you and refresh your soul when you sleep. If you are able, obtain a statue of ‘Sleeping St. Joseph’ … Write down your intentions and place them in the care of St. Joseph. Let him communicate with God about you.”
Visit Father Ho’s blog 何庭耀神父 The Blog of a Chinese Catholic Priest in Vancouver.
聖若瑟勞工
聖金口約望說：『瑪利亞是木匠的淨配，因為耶穌、教會的淨配，是以木十字去救贖普世。』
在通諭中，教宗庇護十一世寫道：『為使人類所渴望的基督的和平，加速臨格於基督的王國中，吾人特將教會對抗共產主義及其無神論的運動，置諸教會主保大聖若瑟的蔭庇之下。聖若瑟既屬工人階層，又曾和他辛勤照料的納匝肋聖家，親身嘗到貧困的苦頭。』
在1955年5月1日，教宗庇護十二世宣布5月1日為聖若瑟勞工瞻禮。他寫道：『我們高興地向你們宣布我們決定去制定-----並實在制定-----聖若瑟勞工瞻禮，以5月1日定為瞻禮日。親愛的工人，你們喜歡這禮物嗎？我肯定你們喜歡，因為那納匝肋的謙卑工人不但在天主和教會面前使用雙手勞動者的尊嚴人格化，並時常作照顧你們和你們家庭的保護者。』
聖施禮華回憶說：『跟所有的基督徒一樣，我也十分感恩於教會決定宣佈恭敬聖若瑟勞工的瞻禮。這瞻禮確認了工作的神聖價值，顯出了教會怎樣公開地回響福音中心的真理，那是天主希望世人予以默想的，特別在我們現在的世代中。』
聖施禮華喜歡重復地說：『在你的工作中聖化自已，聖化你的工作，在你工作中聖化他人。』
在宗座文獻中，聖若望、保祿二世寫道：『工作是納匝肋聖家生活中愛的日常表現。福音書特別指出若瑟所從事的一種工作來維持他的家計：他是木匠。這簡單的一句話總括了若瑟的一生。……在我們今日，教會以制定五月一日為工人若瑟禮儀紀念日來強調這點。人的工作，尤其是手工勞動，在福音書上有特別顯突地位。連同天主聖子的人性，工作也在降生成人的奧秘中被提升，也以特殊的方式被救贖。』
Celia Baij修女寫道：『聖若瑟顯赫地做好他所有的工作，每人都經常深深佩服。若瑟接納一切給予他的勞作。酬勞他讓他人自行決定，他感激地收取一如他收到禮物一般，不像是應得的酬勞…在他細小的工場中的若瑟時常騰出時間祈禱，不時俯身地上向天主作完全的奉獻自己。』
近年，教會中『睡眠聖若瑟』聖像十分流行。Donald Calloway神父寫道：『睡眠聖若瑟可以教導現代人生命的一個重要課程。其中一項是：休息是好的。作為一個工作狂永遠不會是件好事。聖若瑟並不是一個工作狂。他喜歡睡眠。睡眠讓他靈魂重新振作。天主在他睡眠時與他溝通，因著睡眠，他成為更神聖的丈夫和父親。在你休息的時候，你並不是在波費時間。睡眠是天主喜悅的。在你睡眠時天主會跟你說話，會更新你的靈魂。如果可能的話找一個「睡眠聖若瑟」聖像…寫下你的意願並交托於聖若瑟。讓他為你給天主聯絡。』