Working conditions
Let us pray that through work, each person might find fulfilment, families might be sustained in dignity, and that society might be humanized.
Due to the death of Pope Francis, the format for the video accompanying this prayer intention has changed. It offers for our reflection a few words on this topic from the last three Popes. The teaching of Popes John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Francis, emphasizes that the human person must be the centre and priority of the world of work. The Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network entrusts the mission of Pope Leo XIV to the Lord and continues its apostolic work, praying for the challenges of humanity and the Church’s mission.

TEXT OF THIS MONTH’S MESSAGE

During a General Audience in 2022, Pope Francis said: “The evangelists Matthew and Mark refer to Joseph as a carpenter. Jesus practiced his father’s trade, which was a pretty hard job. From an economic point of view, it did not ensure great earnings. This biographical fact about Joseph and Jesus” made him “think of all the workers in the world.”
“Work”, Pope Francis added, “anoints our dignity: What gives you dignity is not bringing bread home. What gives you dignity is earning your bread.”
Pope Benedict XVI, addressing all workers on the feast of Saint Joseph in 2006, also stressed that “work is of fundamental importance to the fulfilment of the human being and to the development of society. Thus, it must always be organized and carried out with full respect for human dignity and must always serve the common good. At the same time,” Pope Benedict remarked, “it is indispensable that people do not allow themselves to be enslaved by work or idolize it, claiming to find in it the ultimate and definitive meaning of life.”
And Saint John Paul II said during the celebration of the Jubilee of Workers in the year 2000 that, “the Jubilee Year calls for a rediscovery of the meaning and value of work. It is also an invitation to address the economic and social imbalances in the world of work by re-establishing the right hierarchy of values, giving priority to the dignity of working men and women and to their freedom, responsibility and participation.” John Paul II also encouraged us to “redress situations of injustice” while not forgetting those “suffering because of unemployment, inadequate wages or lack of material resources.”
Let us pray that through work, each person might find fulfilment, families might be sustained in dignity, and that society might be humanized.