Joseph Was Silent

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Father, Holy Family, humility, obedient, silence, Sisters of St. Joseph, spouse, St. Joseph, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, worker

Today Catholics around the world celebrate the feast of St. Joseph, Patron of the Universal Church and the “silent partner” of Mary, in what we know as the Holy Family. I say that Joseph was silent because although he appears in several places in the gospels, there are no words attributed to him. It is up to us to imagine his part in the conversations that took place in family life, their travels and other significant events. That can be difficult for people who desire to know more about Joseph but much easier for those with active imaginations.

As I think of it, that is true for us with much of Scripture. We need to take the descriptions of events and fill-in the blanks where conversation is lacking. Those of us who live under the patronage of Joseph, e.g. Sisters of St. Joseph, carry him with us – most likely as a reflection of how we try to live our commitment to the religious life. What we can say about Joseph is that he heard God speaking to him in dreams, trusted what he heard and was obedient to God’s messages throughout his life.

I envision Joseph as a loving, gentle and kind spouse and father, humble about his work and his role in God’s plan. Although we do not hear him speak for himself, his humility and willingness to carry out God’s plan is evident in his actions. I have come to love the portrayal of his silent acceptance and way of moving through life as gift. Often words fail when God intervenes in our days in special ways or surprising moments. I believe Joseph treasured these events in his life and that they anchored him when the difficult moments came. Silence was his home, I think, and it served him well.

May Joseph’s gift of silence be a prayer to bless each of us today and may his love for God and his family be an example to all. Happy Feast!

What’s Fair?

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fair, fairness, generosity, generous, God's way, Gospel, Jesus, justice, Philippians, St. Paul, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, vineyard, worker

The parables of Jesus often find us scratching our heads or grumbling about the outcome of the stories. This weekend’s gospel is one of the more familiar distressing examples. It’s that perplexing story of the workers in the vineyard who were paid what had been agreed upon at the beginning of the day. Fine, right? No, not really, since those who had been hired just an hour before the end of the workday, because no one had offered them work until then, got the same pay as those who had worked all day.

How are we able to make this a story of justice? It’s impossible really, but here’s where the reading from Isaiah comes in: “My thoughts are not your thoughts”, God says, “nor are my ways your ways.” We think everything should be fair. The person who cuts the pie must do so judiciously so that no one gets a bigger piece than anyone else. But sometimes some of the people don’t even get a bite, never mind a smaller piece! The workers who had been hired for the last hour were also probably standing out in the hot sun, hoping for someone to come and hire them so they could feed their family that day. And so God’s way prevailed.

So what is fair? Does it always mean everyone gets the exact same treatment or remuneration for the same circumstance? Or could it be that each person, being a unique reflection of the divine, should be considered individually according to need? We have been amazingly generous as a country over the past several weeks, reaching out to those affected by hurricanes or fires. People have given their time, their talent and their treasure to assure that anyone in need can receive as much help as can be given.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if, all the time, we might be willing to fling open our hearts to those in need without stinting – as if everyone had a right to as much as everyone else? Isn’t that how we would always want God to treat us? Paul’s last line to the Philippians today calls them to “conduct yourselves in a way worthy of the gospel.” Perhaps we ought to try to remember that challenge ourselves as we listen to Jesus in the gospel today asking us, “Are you envious because I am generous?”

Labor Day

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Adam, connectedness, creation, Genesis, God, human, Joan Chittister, just, Labor Day, labor movement, meaningful work, minimum wage, privilege, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, Wisdom Distilled from the Daily, work, worker

I often think that “Labor Day” must be a confusing holiday for people who are not native to our country or anywhere else that it is celebrated at some point in the year. Some of us have taken to calling it “Non-labor Day” since it is, after all, a day when everyone but essential workers stay home or go on picnics or celebrate in other such ways a “day off” from work.

In the United States, Labor Day is always the first Monday in September. It is, the internet says, a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity and well-being of our country. It became a federal holiday in 1894.

The ideal of “a good day’s work for a good day’s pay” has become rather skewed in many quarters in our country as we see inequity in many places where CEOs of big companies are paid exorbitant salaries while people like health aides are paid little more than minimum wage for their caring service to the sick and elderly members of our society. We need to work continually for just wages in every sphere and celebrate new initiatives where we see young executives sharing their wealth with their employees and many of the richest people establishing foundations with specific projects that seek the betterment of our world.

I took a look at Joan Chittister’s chapter entitled “Work: Participation in Creation” in her book, Wisdom Distilled From the Daily, just to get another, maybe more spiritual, perspective on the topic. Here are some tidbits that might be helpful as we attempt to balance our view on things.

Work in the monastic tradition is not something to be avoided. Work is not a punishment or a penance. Work is a privilege.

In monastic spirituality…work is not a private enterprise. Work is not to enable me to get ahead; the purpose of work is to enable me to get more human and to make my world more just. (I like that one!)

Genesis is very clear on the subject. “Then God took Adam,” Scripture says, “and put him in the garden to cultivate and care for it.” (GEN. 2:15). Adam was put in the garden to till it and to keep it, not to contemplate it; not to live off of it; not to lounge. Even in an ideal world, it seems, God expected us to participate in the co-creation of the world.

So here’s to those who provide meaningful work and good environments for their workers! Here’s to those who give of themselves for the good of society and their own growth and well-being! And here’s to those whose work is for justice for all, especially the under-served among us. May we all come to understand the connectedness that we share in the building up of the world, God’s sacred creation.

 

 

 

 

 

Which One Are You?

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answer, honest, in over my head, Jesus, Matthew, response, say yes, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, untruthful, vineyard, worker

Today’s gospel (MT 21:28-32) tells the parable of a man who had two sons whom he instructs to go to his vineyard to work. The first one says no but upon reflection does decide to go. The second says yes but doesn’t go. Jesus asks which one did the father’s will. They answer that it is the first son that has done so which is, of course, the right answer.

If I consider these two responses, I certainly hope that normally I fall into neither of these categories of behavior. I’d like to find myself in the middle – as saying “yes” and then doing it. If I am truthful, however, I would probably have to say I am, in a way, like both of the sons. I try to say yes whenever a situation warrants a yes, but sometimes I am too quick to do so and find myself “in over my head” and unable to complete or do a good job with whatever I have agreed to – or sometimes I agree to do something I just forget to do. I can’t say, however, that I have ever knowingly said yes to something that I have had no intention of doing. My issue is lack of reflection on my ability and/or desire to do what is asked of me. This is what I think was the case of the first son who said no but upon reflection, did acquiesce to the father’s request.

So the lesson for me today is to strive for generosity of response in all cases but to pause and consider before I give answer so that I can be confident of the outcome and honest in word and action.

Surprise!

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Matthew, The last will be first and the first last., The Sophia Center for Spirituality, vineyard, worker

All of the Scripture readings for this Sunday offer us points for pondering but certainly one of the best is found in that surprising gospel text from Matthew 16 about the workers in the vineyard who get a surprise at the end of the day. I speak, of course, of the ones who have been working all day, seeing more and more people added to the workforce as the day progresses. When those hired for the last hour are paid first and receive the wage agreed upon for the whole day, the early workers get excited, expecting more money. The surprise is that they get just what they agreed on – the same as the latecomers.

The line that is often quoted from this text says, “The last will be first and the first last.” Much more significant, I find, is the question from the landowner to those surprised and disappointed ones. He asks, “Are you envious because I am generous?”