San Giuseppe Lavoratore was also out of work

Mass unemployment is a deeply unwelcome background for this year's Feast of St. Joseph the Worker, but the Catholic celebration has lessons for everyone, regardless of the working situation, according to two priests with experience on St. Joseph and the dignity of work.

Citing the escape of the Holy Family to Egypt, the devotional writer Father Donald Calloway said that St. Joseph is "very empathetic" towards those who suffer from unemployment.

"He himself would have been unemployed at some point during his flight to Egypt," the priest told CNA. “They had to pack everything up and go to a foreign country with nothing. They weren't going to do it. "

Calloway, author of the book "Consecration to St. Joseph: the wonders of our spiritual father", is an Ohio-based priest of the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception.

He suggested that St. Joseph "was certainly worried at some point: how will he find work in a foreign country, not knowing the language, not knowing the people?"

At least 30,3 million Americans have applied for unemployment in the past six weeks, in what is perhaps the worst unemployment situation in the country's history, reports CNBC. Many others work from home under the travel restrictions of the coronavirus, while countless workers face recently dangerous jobs where they may be at risk of contracting the coronavirus and bringing it home to their families.

Father Sinclair Oubre, an employment lawyer, similarly thought that escaping to Egypt as a period of unemployment for Saint Joseph - and also a period that showed an example of virtue.

“Stay focused: stay open, keep fighting, don't be destroyed. He was able to make a living for him and his family, "said Oubre. "For those who are unemployed, St. Joseph gives us a model not to allow the difficulties of life to crush the spirit, but rather trusting in the providence of God and adding to that providence our attitude and our strong work ethic".

Oubre is pastoral moderator of the Catholic Labor Network and director of the Apostleship of the Seas of the diocese of Beaumont, which serves seafarers and others in maritime work.

The feast of San Giuseppe Lavoratore was inaugurated by Pope Pius XII, who announced it on May 1, 1955 in an audience with Italian workers. For them he described Saint Joseph as "the humble craftsman of Nazareth" who "not only personifies the dignity of the manual worker with God and the Holy Church", but is "also always the provident guardian of you and your families".

Pius XII encouraged continuing religious education for adult workers and said it was an "atrocious slander" to accuse the Church of being "an ally of capitalism against workers".

"She, mother and teacher of all, is always particularly concerned about her children who are in the most difficult conditions, and in fact has also validly contributed to the achievement of honest progress already achieved by various categories of workers," said the pope .

While the Church has rejected various systems of Marxist socialism, Pius XII said, no priest or Christian can remain deaf to a cry of justice and a spirit of brotherhood. The Church cannot ignore that the worker who seeks to improve his condition but must face obstacles opposed to the "order of God" and to the will of God for earthly goods.

May 1 is celebrated as a labor day in many countries, although not in the United States. Calloway said that at the time of the declaration, communism was a serious threat trying to take on a long-standing celebration of the work.

The observance originated in the late nineteenth century from protests by the American trade union movement on May 1 against excessively long working days.

"Workers complained that these long hours punished the body and did not allow them time to take care of family duties or improve themselves through education," said Clayton Sinyai, executive director of the Catholic Labor Network, to CNA.

Calloway reflected that most people in life are workers, both outside and at the desk.

"They can find a model in Saint Joseph the Worker," he said. "No matter what your job is, you can bring God into it and it can be beneficial for you, your family and society as a whole."

Oubre said there is much to learn from reflection on how St. Joseph's work nurtured and protected the Virgin Mary and Jesus, and so it was a form of sanctification in the world.

"If Joseph hadn't done what he had done, it wouldn't have been possible for the Virgin Mary, a pregnant maiden, to survive in that environment," said Oubre.

"We come to realize that the work we do is not just for this world, but rather we can work to help build the kingdom of God," he continued. "The work we do takes care of our family and children and helps build future generations who are there."

Calloway warned against "the ideologies of what job it should be."

“It can become slavery. People can turn into workaholics. There is a misunderstanding about what the job should be, "he said.

For him, the feast day shows the importance of the family and the importance of rest, given that God spoke to St. Joseph in his dreams.

St. Joseph gave dignity to the job "because, like the one who chose to be the earthly father of Jesus, he taught the Son of God to do manual labor," said Calloway. "He was given the task of teaching the son of God a job, like a carpenter."

"We are not called to be slaves to a profession, or to find our ultimate meaning of life in our work, but to allow our work to glorify God, to build the human community, to be a source of joy for all," He continued . "The fruit of your work is designed to be enjoyed by yourself and others, but not at the expense of harming others or depriving them of a fair wage or overloading them, or having working conditions that go beyond human dignity".

Oubre found a similar lesson, saying "our work is always at the service of our family, our community, our society, the world itself".

While some entrepreneurs and workers hope to see a rapid end to corporate restrictions and closings aimed at slowing down the spread of coronavirus, Oubre warned that opening a non-essential business to make money may not be prudent. He used the example of a football stadium, overly focused on opening in August, even though it brings people into a situation that potentially spreads a dangerous disease.

"I don't know if this is the most prudent decision that comes out of the spirit of service at this particular moment," he said. "It's not something we have to do now."

"St. Joseph gives us that image of humble service work, ”stressed Oubre. "If we want to get back to work right now, we need to make sure it grows from a spirit of humility, service and promotion of the common good."

Some of those who have jobs are protesting against working conditions that they find dangerous. They staged May 1 protests and strikes on Amazon, Instacart, Whole Foods, Walmart, Target, FedEx and others, citing health and safety concerns during the outbreak, reports the news and commentary site The Intercept.

Oubre said that even these protesters must recognize the importance of the work in a spirit of humility, service and promotion of the common good.

Calloway also reflected on the duel positions of workers who oppose coronavirus protections, while other workers protest to seek better protections.

"We are in uncharted territory," he said. “It is there that we move into the spiritual aspect of asking Saint Joseph to give us wisdom to help us know what to do in this difficult situation. Be careful, of course, we don't want to spread this. But at the same time, people have to get back to work. We can't go on this long. We can't support it. "

Calloway said that no worker should work alone and "be selfish about his job".

"The job is meant to help himself and others," he said. "It is when we become stingy and selfish that we start to accumulate, and we take huge salaries for ourselves while your workers receive cents."

St. Joseph is described as "the most righteous" in the New Testament and would also have been a righteous man in his work, the priest said.

For Oubre, the feast of San Giuseppe Lavoratore is a time to remember the "invisible workers".

"No matter how humble the job is and how it can be considered low-skilled or semi-skilled, it is absolutely essential for the quality of life of the nation," said Oubre. “No matter how society views work, it becomes a very, very important task. If this task is not carried out, all the more respected, prestigious work cannot happen. "

The coronavirus epidemic has attracted support and recognition for the risky work of doctors and nurses. Oubre noted that hospital housekeepers and housekeepers may go unnoticed, but are critical to keeping infections low and maintaining the safety of doctors, nurses and patients, while hospital support staff also deserve due credit.

Even the grocery store controllers "are literally endangering their lives by interacting with the public" so that people can continue to feed, the priest said.

“Suddenly the girl at Kroger's checkout is not just a high school girl we will deal with and continue with. Become an essential person who helps people meet their needs, "said Oubre. "He is endangering his physical health, being in a public realm, interacting with hundreds of people a day."

Calloway noted that many people will consecrate themselves to St. Joseph on the feast day of May 1st, a practice encouraged by his book.