Posted by The WORD in other words (2018) by Fr Ferdinand Antoine Bajao, SVD – Rome, Italy
Feast of Saint Joseph, the Worker – May 1
In the English translation of the Roman Missal, today’s feast is that of St. Joseph the Worker, while the Latin Missal reads S.Ioseph Opificis. As an opifex, he is literally, “a maker or creator of works.” Our understanding of the relationship between the work and the worker has, thus, deepened; the vocation aspect of the role sharpened. It means there is more to St. Joseph than being a faber (worker) because he is an opifex.
St. Joseph did not only work for Mary’s and Jesus’s daily sustenance, but also created the home in which the Lord would grow in wisdom and stature, and in God’s and people’s favor. Through his obedience to the Creator Father’s will, he also participated in salvation work by uniting himself to God’s work. He mirrors the Lord’s assertion in the gospel for today, “…the world must know that I love the Father and that I do just as the Father has commanded me.”
In paintings, he is depicted as the silent and peaceful persona. It took more than just silence and “peaceful” submission on St. Joseph’s part to take the Lady who was with child that was not his, or take flight to Egypt with his spouse and son for dear life towards uncertainty. This peace is one that the world cannot give. Only He can. It is the peace that consoles the heart and banishes fear, and enables one to work the Work. This is our calling.
Thus, in the Opening Prayer (Collect) of this feast, we pray that by his example we may complete the works commanded by God for us to do for we are co-operators and co-creators of an ongoing work of creation and salvation. In this sense, St. Joseph is our model.
One comment