Ave Maria series
What does the Church’s social doctrine say about the topics of labor and unemployment?
To work is a duty that God has given to us. In a common effort we are supposed to look after and continue his work of creation. “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it” (Genesis 2:15). For most people, work is the foundation of life. Unemployment is a serious misfortune that must be dealt with resolutely.
St. Joseph the carpenter with the boy Jesus. --Painting by Georges de La Tour about 1645.
While today many people who would like to work find no jobs, there are also “workaholics” who work so much that they have no time left for God and their fellowmen. And while many people can scarcely feed themselves and their families with their wages, others earn so much that they can live a life of unimaginable luxury. Work is not an end in itself but should serve the development of a humane society. That is why Catholic social teaching is committed to an economic order in which all men can collaborate actively and share in the prosperity that is achieved. It insists on a just wage that enables all to have a dignified existence, and it calls on the rich to practice the virtues of moderation, solidarity, and sharing. 47, 332
“Work is a good thing for man—a good thing for his humanity—because through work man not only transforms nature, adapting it to his own needs, but he also achieves fulfillment as a human being and indeed, in a sense, becomes “more a human being”. –St. John Paul II (1920-2005), Encyclical “Laborem Exercens (LE)
JC St. Joseph the Carpenter
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