No matter how simple the work, hands that labor are united with Christ in the work of recreating the world. Our work is not just something that earns our living but an essential aspect of our spiritual gift of self to the redemption of humanity.
We use the words casually or desperately: “earning a living,” or “supporting oneself.” One small advantage of the tragedy of joblessness in our culture is that we learn not to take those words for granted. If we can work, we are more grateful than we can express. By the work of our hands, we feed and clothe and shelter your sisters who are daily holding you in prayer. Our working hands are praying hands; our working hearts are hearts that hold you up to a loving God.
We love the text from St Bernard, enshrined in our Constitutions, reminding us that only by the experience of personal love of Christ, will we be happy to persevere in a life that is ordinary, obscure and laborious. Does that sound deadly? Oh it isn’t. The “ordinary and obscure” is a quiet place in which the person can walk out of an endless round of self-promotion to rejoice in the simplicity of being the beloved of God.
The grounds, the kitchen, the floors, the carpeting: “Here I am, Lord. I come to do your will.” Minding and tending the house of God—day by day and year by year, growing together into the mind and heart of Christ. The simplest task is a participation in the creation and sustaining of the world God so loves.
