Wednesday, May 1, 2002
St. Joseph, the Worker
1st Reading: Gn 1:26-2:3 or Col 3:14-15, 17, 23-24
Gospel: Mt 13:54-58
Jesus went to his hometown and taught the people in their synagogue.
They were amazed and said, "Where did he get this wisdom and these
special powers? Isn't he the carpenter's son? Isn't Mary his mother and
aren't James, Joseph, Simon and Judas his brothers? Aren't all his sisters
living here? How did he get all this?" And so they took offense at
him.
Jesus said to them, "The only place where prophets are not welcome
is their hometown and in their own family." And he did not perform
many miracles there because of their lack of faith.
Commentary
The scripture readings bring together human beings and God under the theme of work. We read about creation as God's work, and then about the work of Joseph the carpenter and the son who followed in his footsteps. To be human is to love and to work. These are also the hallmarks of the divine. Love is the dynamism to create, share and enter into relationship. God's work is the limitless universe, the blue-green planet earth, at once so vast and so tiny, with all its diversity of people, animal, plants, elements, and all the new combinations born of their interactions. Our role: to love and to work: preserving, promoting and developing life, by creatively using all that God has provided. Our responsibility: to give always back more than we take out; this makes our work truly God-like.