Introduction to Faith@WorkStart here to understand the basics of how our faith connects to what we do in our everyday occupations.
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The Connection Between God and Work
In 60 seconds each (5 minutes total), these videos from the The High Calling introduce us to the connection between our faith and work.
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The Basics of Faith & Work
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What is Work?
When we speak of work, we refer to a person's occupation: that which primarily occupies a person's time. It may be a traditional profession, homemaker, what a person does in retirement, being a student, or searching for work. These are all ways that we work, whether we are paid for it or not. The Dignity of Work It is essential that work remain at the service to people, their rights, and their vocations. We gain dignity from working when we are not being exploited, disrespected, or undervalued. |
Collaborating With God
When we work, we are collaborating with God in the continuing work of creation. Our work is one of the primary ways that we transform the world in line with Gospel values. Part of Our Identity Work was made for humanity, not the other way around. Work is good for us, making us more human and allowing us to live out our vocations. Work Ethics Our work is one of the most important areas where we are called to act not only ethically, but out of Christian love. Work raises many challenging moral issues. |
Work-Life Balance
Work is good, but too much work can be very bad. Stewarding our time well leads us to seek a proper balance between occupation and all other aspects of our life. |
The Catholic Church on Work
Work is fundamental to the dignity of a person. Work, to use an image, 'anoints' us with dignity, fills us with dignity, makes us similar to God, who has worked and still works, who always acts... Pope Francis,
Address on the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker, May 1, 2013 ...the most common and, in many ways, the most important Christian witness is often neither very visible nor highly structured. It is the sacrifice of parents trying to raise children with concern for others; the service and creativity of workers who do their best and reach out to those in need; the struggle of business owners trying to reconcile the bottom line and the needs of employees and customers; and the hard choices of public officials who seek to protect the weak and pursue the common good. The Church's social mission is advanced by teachers and scientists, by family farmers and bankers, by sales persons and entertainers. |
We have to regard ourselves as sealed, even branded, by this mission of bringing light, blessing, enlivening, raising up, healing and freeing. All around us we begin to see nurses with soul, teachers with soul, politicians with soul, people who have chosen deep down to be with others and for others. But once we separate our work from our private lives, everything turns grey and we will always be seeking recognition or asserting our needs. We stop being a people. Pope Francis, The Joy of the Gospel (273)
The church is convinced that work is a fundamental dimension of human existence on earth…. The church considers it her duty to speak out on work…. It is her particular duty to form a spirituality of work which will help all people to come closer, through work, to God…. This Christian spirituality of work should be a heritage shared by all. Saint John Paul II, On Human Work
I come from your midst. I come from the quarries of Zakrzowek, from the Solvay furnaces in Borek Falecki, and then from Nowa Huta. Through all these surroundings, through my own experience of work, I boldly say that I learned the gospel anew. Saint John Paul II, Homily in Nowa Huta, Poland, July 1979
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