Day 316: Labor and Social Justice (2426-2436)
It’s Day 316!!
ECONOMIC ACTIVITY AND SOCIAL JUSTICE
Paragraph 2426 says, “The development of economic activity and growth in production are meant to provide for the needs of human beings. Economic life is not meant solely to multiply goods produced and increase profit or power; it is ordered first of all to the service of persons, of the whole man, and of the entire human community. Economic activity, conducted according to its own proper methods, is to be exercised within the limits of the moral order, in keeping with social justice so as to correspond to God’s plan for man.”
Human work is a good, no matter what the work is
It is because human beings, who are made in God’s image and likeness, are doing the work
There are some laws about keeping with the integrity of the worker and what could violate the integrity of the worker
Let’s pray!!
Prayer by Fr. Mike: “Father in Heaven, in the name of your Son Jesus Christ, we ask for your Holy Spirit to come and guide our thoughts. Guide our minds. Open our minds so that we can hear your truth and understand it. God, give us a practical understanding of your wisdom and of your revelation. Give us a practical understanding of what it is and how it is that you are calling us to do, and how it is you are calling us to live and work, and approach our work and approach some of the decisions that we may need to make when it comes to just economic systems. We ask you to please give us a heart like yours, not only a mind like yours, so we can see clearly, but a heart so that we can love what you love so that we can hate what you hate. Lord God, help us this day with your Holy Spirit. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen”
So there we have it!!
Paragraph 2426 says, “The development of economic activity and growth in production are meant to provide for the needs of human beings. Economic life is not meant solely to multiply goods produced and increase profit or power; it is ordered first of all to the service of persons, of the whole man, and of the entire human community. Economic activity, conducted according to its own proper methods, is to be exercised within the limits of the moral order, in keeping with social justice so as to correspond to God’s plan for man.”
After the Fall, work has changed
Work still has dignity
BUT…
For many of us, work falls into two extremes
Drudgery, it is fruitless and pointless
It doesn’t do anything and it doesn’t mean anything
The other extreme is that work is everything
Work is my identity
If I didn’t have this work, who would I be?
Work’s value does not come from how much money you make
You can be retired
You can be someone who never got a paycheck for the work you did
That is still human labor
That is still full of dignity
Paragraph 2427 says, “Human work proceeds directly from persons created in the image of God and called to prolong the work of creation by subduing the earth, both with and for one another. Hence work is a duty: ‘If any one will not work, let him not eat.’ Work honors the Creator’s gifts and the talents received from him. It can also be redemptive. By enduring the hardship of work in union with Jesus, the carpenter of Nazareth and the one crucified on Calvary, man collaborates in a certain fashion with the Son of God in his redemptive work. He shows himself to be a disciple of Christ by carrying the cross, daily, in the work he is called to accomplish. Work can be a means of sanctification and a way of animating earthly realities with the Spirit of Christ.”
Whenever we work, we are honoring the talents God gave us and honoring the gifts God has given us
We are honoring the fact that we are alive and He has held us in existence
This is for any kind of human labor
If you are someone who is stuck inside and can’t go to work, and you can’t get out of bed, then what is your labor?
Your labor is uniting that suffering to the sufferings of Jesus on the Cross
If you can get out there in the workplace you can still unite that part of your life to the Carpenter
Jesus Himself made a living by the sweat of His brow
Every human being’s work has dignity and value
Paragraph 2428 says, “In work, the person exercises and fulfills in part the potential inscribed in his nature. The primordial value of labor stems from man himself, its author and its beneficiary. Work is for man, not man for work. Everyone should be able to draw from work the means of providing for his life and that of his family, and of serving the human community.”
Our friends who are not working right now still have dignity and worth
Even the smallest of tasks that you can accomplish is so good
Let’s listen to Fr. Mike talk about a conversation he had with a recently retired man…
There is a sense of accomplishment and meaning that comes along with human work
There is also a lot of work that is associated with the economy
Paragraph 2429 says, “Everyone has the right of economic initiative; everyone should make legitimate use of his talents to contribute to the abundance that will benefit all and to harvest the just fruits of his labor. He should seek to observe regulations issued by legitimate authority for the sake of the common good.”
Everyone has the right and duty to make legitimate use of their talents to contribute to the world
The danger is that conflicts will happen in economic life because of different interests opposed to one another
Paragraph 2430 says, “Economic life brings into play different interests, often opposed to one another. This explains why the conflicts that characterize it arise. Efforts should be made to reduce these conflicts by negotiation that respects the rights and duties of each social partner: those responsible for business enterprises, representatives for wage-earners (for example, trade unions), and public authorities when appropriate.”
Paragraph 2431 says, “The responsibility of the state. ‘Economic activity, especially the activity of a market economy, cannot be conducted in an institutional, juridical, or political vacuum. On the contrary, it presupposes sure guarantees of individual freedom and private property, as well as a stable currency and efficient public services. Hence the principal task of the state is to guarantee this security, so that those who work and produce can enjoy the fruits of their labors and thus feel encouraged to work efficiently and honestly…Another task of the state is that of overseeing and directing the exercise of human rights in the economic sector. However, primary responsibility in this area belongs not to the state but to individuals and to the various groups and associations which make up society.”
We want the state and all of society guaranteeing these four things
Individual freedom
Private property
Stable currency
Efficient public services
The help that organizations can offer and the power they wield are meant to be limited
Paragraph 2432 says, “Those responsible for business enterprises are responsible to society for the economic and ecological effects of their operations. They have an obligation to consider the good of persons and not only the increase of profits. Profits are necessary, however. They make possible the investments that ensure the future of a business and they guarantee employment.”
Let’s listen to Fr. Mike talk about when he first joined Ascension…
Paragraph 2434 says, “A just wage is the legitimate fruit of work. To refuse or withhold it can be a grave injustice. In determining fair pay both the needs and the contributions of each person must be taken into account. “Remuneration for work should guarantee man the opportunity to provide a dignified livelihood for himself and his family on the material, social, cultural, and spiritual level, taking into account the role and the productivity of each, the state of the business, and the common good. Agreement between the parties is not sufficient to justify morally the amount to be received in wages.”
Paragraph 2435 says, “Recourse to a strike is morally legitimate when it cannot be avoided, or at least when it is necessary to obtain a proportionate benefit. It becomes morally unacceptable when accompanied by violence, or when objectives are included that are not directly linked to working conditions or are contrary to the common good.”
Paragraph 2436 says, “It is unjust not to pay the social security contributions required by legitimate authority. Unemployment almost always wounds its victims’ dignity and threatens the equilibrium of his life. Besides the harm done to him personally, it entails many risks for his family.”
If you find yourself unemployed, we are praying for you because work is good
You are good and the work that you do has dignity
Fr. Mike is praying FOR YOU!!
Please pray for Fr. Mike and for each other!!
I cannot WAIT…