SERMON/REFLECTION/HOMILY FOR THE MEMORIAL OF ST. JOSEPH THE WORKER MAY 2023
Homily for the Memorial of St. Joseph the Worker. Genesis 1:26--2:3. Psalm 90:2,3-4,12-13,14,16. Matthew 13:54-58. 1st May has long been dedicated to working people. In 1955, Pope Pius XII expressed the desire that on this day, the example of Joseph, the worker, be presented to Christian communities. The contemplation of Joseph is meant to enable us to grasp the meaning of human labour as our way of sharing in the creative power of God and cooperating in the building of a more just and Christian society where greater solidarity is achieved. All work is a collaboration in God's own work of creation. In the first reading, we read the Genesis account of man in the work of creation. Sacred Scripture also tells us that God placed man in the garden of Eden to till and keep it (Gen.2:15). From the moment God created man, He wanted man to participate in his creativeness. Work for man from the beginning is a command of nature. All that original sin was to change the form of this coop...