Work Is Love Made Visible: A Meditation on Grace

Jim Wishloff

American Journal of Economics and Sociology, 2020, vol. 79, issue 4, 1181-1208

Abstract: How work is understood and undertaken is a function of particular philosophical and theological assumptions. A meditation on work from the perspective of Catholic social thought must begin with the key articles of the Christian faith, namely, belief in the Trinity and belief in the Incarnation. Human dignity is profoundly grounded in this divine reality. Human persons are made in the image of a triune God and are given a particular vocation to fulfill. The Christian life is a summons to perfect love. Christians are called to love God above all things and to love all others and all of creation for the sake of God. God’s grace elevates Christian disciples to a new level of being, providing them with the supernatural help they need to be co‐creators with him. This mandate is specified more finely by examining the specific commands Jesus gives as to the work that must be done. Jesus sends his followers to reproduce and take care of creation, to be holy, to bear fruit that will last, to meet the needs of the most vulnerable, and to evangelize. In this way, the political economic order is formed according to God’s plan for the world and takes a considerably different shape from the structures that arise from dominant secular premises.

Date: 2020
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