Worker

This is one of my favorite images of St. Joseph with the child Jesus in his workshop. It was done by the late Sr. Celeste of the Reno Carmel and is just called Joseph and Son. I like the way she used the wheels Joseph has made to imply the halos.

Yesterday, May 1, Catholics kept the memory of St. Joseph precisely as a man who earned his living by the sweat of his brow, quietly and faithfully fulfilling his role in a very atypical family.

The opening prayer for Mass was:

God our Father,
creator and ruler of the universe,
in every age you call men and women
to develop and use their gifts for the good of others.
With St. Joseph as our example and guide,
help us to do the work you have asked
and come to the rewards you have promised.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
Amen.

I think it is sort of sad that most people, if they think of St. Joseph at all, think that burying a statue of him is one way to sell a house. Given the housing market, I suspect the trade in plastic statues of St. Joseph may be pretty brisk.

I think some of us -- myself definitely included -- might learn something else from his example.