There is a saint for everything, and I mean everything: oversleeping (St. Vitus), hangovers (St. Bibiana), arms dealers (St. Adrian of Nicomeda), gas station workers (St. Eligius), protection against caterpillars (St. Magnus of Fussen), and even ugly people (St. Drogo). But what about parish workers?
In addition to patron saints of specific types of parish work–secretaries (Saint Genesius of Arles), musicians (St. Cecilia), youth (St. John Bosco), catechists (St. Charles Borromeo), and custodians (St. Zita)–and in addition to the patron saint of work in general (St. Joseph the Worker), there are a variety of saints we can look to for inspiration and intercession as we work alongside the clergy in the vineyard of the Lord.
St. John the Baptist was called to prepare the way for Jesus. The Church recalls this reality every morning during Lauds in the Canticle of Zechariah: “And you, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way, to give his people knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins” (Luke 1:76-77). Whether you sit at the main desk, push around a garbage can, or coordinate teams of volunteers, your efforts prepare the way of the Lord. Taking Mass intentions, setting up liturgies, setting out tables and chairs, planning a scope and sequence, all of it allows the Lord’s people to gain knowledge of salvation and the forgiveness of their sins. John must have struck other people as a bit eccentric in his camel’s hair shirt and leather belt while calling the religious leaders a “brood of vipers!” (Matthew 3:7). And maybe some of your family or friends think you a bit eccentric too for being a little too into this church thing. St. John the Baptist is an excellent intercessor for us.
St. Josemaria Escriva founded Opus Dei, Latin for ‘Work of God’, in 1928 to promote the idea of ordinary work as a path to holiness and a way of serving God. While St. Joseph is a great example of holiness in ordinary work, St. Josemaria is a modern witness who spoke so eloquently about this reality. In one such example, he stated, “Let me stress this point: it is in the simplicity of your ordinary work, in the monotonous details of each day, that you have to find the secret, which is hidden from so many, of something great and new: Love.” In his great trilogy of writings, The Way, The Furrow, and especially in The Forge, he offered many spiritual maxims on experiencing deep union with God through daily tasks. As you strive to reach the bottom of your inbox, prepare another bulk mailing, answer the same parishioner question for the thousandth time, try to remember that these monotonous tasks can make you holy and bring you into deep union with the Lord. In this struggle, St. Josemaria is an excellent intercessor for us.
St. Catherine of Siena is a Doctor of the Church and a mystic who lived at the time of the Great Schism when three different men claimed to be the Pope. During her life, the Popes did not live in Rome but in Avignon, France. Echoing the efforts of St. Bridget of Sweden, Catherine spent twenty years encouraging the Popes to return to their proper diocese: Rome. She is a good reminder to us that even the Pope can fall prey to political pressures, partisan fighting, and weakness of will when faced with the right decision, and that even the Pope needs the continued encouragement of others to do the right thing. One of the most challenging aspects of parish work is the up close view of the very human dimension of the Church and her leaders. Our clergy are human, just as we are, and they need our encouragement to do the right thing even when, and especially when, they continue to fail to do it. St. Catherine did not let up or become overly discouraged, and she is a powerful example to us of a holy persistence in encouraging our leaders.
St. John the Baptist, St. Josemaria Escriva, and St. Catherine of Siena, pray for us!