In 1904, at a meeting in Amsterdam, the International Socialist Conference called on "all Social Democratic Party organizations and trade unions of all countries to demonstrate energetically on May First for the legal establishment of the 8-hour day, for the class demands of the proletariat, and for universal peace." Since then, socialists, communists, and anarchists have used May 1 as a day of protest and civil disorder. Also, due to the Haymarket Fires in Chicago in 1886, it has also been used as a day to create bonfires and start riots. It has also become an important holiday for Communist countries such as the former Soviet Union, China, and Cuba.
It was perhaps due to this fact that Ven. Pius XII, in 1955, instituted the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker. And indeed, the fact that St. Joseph was indeed a worker certainly is more of an inspiration for men than the other Joseph, known as Stalin.
As the ultimate breadwinner of the Holy Family, Joseph had many responsibilities. From carving a table or a chair out of wood, to paying the taxes to Herod as was his duty as a subject, to providing food and shelter to Our Lord and Our Lady, St. Joseph is a model for all men for their families and an example to families of how important the fruits of the labors of the breadwinner is. In the end, the ultimate joy for St. Joseph was not necessarily the fruits of a good work day, but the love and affection that was given to him by Our Lord and Our Lady when he finished up work. The hugs that he received from both of them certainly made the labors all worth while. One can only imagine the joy St. Joseph must have felt when he saw Our Lord run to him, put His arms around him, asking him to carry Him on his broad shoulders, maybe even wanting a piggyback ride, all the while knowing that the Child he held in his arms was God Incarnate. It tells men today that the ultimate rewards of their work are the smiles and sense of satisfaction and security from their family and the sanctification of their works by God, as well as the paycheck.
In these tough economic times, please pray to St. Joseph the Worker for all our workers, for those unemployed, and for those who are struggling to make things work out.
"O glorious Joseph! Who concealed your incomparable and regal dignity of custodian of Jesus and of the Virgin Mary under the humble appearance of a craftsman and provided for them with your work, protect with loving power your sons, especially entrusted to you.
You know their anxieties and sufferings, because you yourself experienced them at the side of Jesus and of His Mother. Do not allow them, oppressed by so many worries, to forget the purpose for which they were created by God. Do not allow the seeds of distrust to take hold of their immortal souls. Remind all the workers that in the fields, in factories, in mines, and in scientific laboratories, they are not working, rejoicing, or suffering alone, but at their side is Jesus, with Mary, His Mother and ours, to sustain them, to dry the sweat of their brow, giving value to their toil. Teach them to turn work into a very high instrument of sanctification as you did. Amen."
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