The purpose of work
Why
do we work? Why is it important?
“Our
work – whatever it is - should become a means to pursue holiness for ourselves
and our families, and to model holiness to those around us.” Archbishop Charles
Chaput, O.F.M. Cap.
The
Catechism teaches that from work we draw the means of providing for ourselves
and our families (CCC 2428). At its most basic, a job brings income, and income
allows for housing and nourishment and fun. Beyond that, work is occupation –
it is ‘not-idleness’; it is labour and service. It is a means of fulfillment of
the potential written within us by means of the gifts we have been given.
There
is another, transformative, purpose of work. Edith Stein (Woman, 257) writes about how the very gifts of femininity (maternity,
being concerned with the personal and relationships) can become unhealthy. We
see this in over-doting mothers, in gossips and nosey-parkers. She writes that
work – whether housework, a trade, science, or anything else – requires we
submit the whole of our person – thoughts, mood, disposition – to it, and
thereby we temper what she calls ‘hyper-individuality’ which very loosely is an
over-emphasis on ourselves. Dying to self is another way to say it: work demands
of us that we submit ourselves to something or someone beyond our own wants and
comforts.
‘Work’
has become a sensitive subject in recent decades, a hot-button topic for those
who believe a woman’s work is in the home, and those who argue a woman can do
everything a man can do. Who is right?
A brief history
The
concept of work, or at least our approach to work, changed with the onset of
the industrial revolution. In the Middle Ages for example, much of the
important work of the time took place in the home, performed or overseen by
women. Women were the bakers, the weavers, brewers, distillers, preservers, and
so on. Men either worked alongside the women, or they were away from home for
war or business. Work was a family concern, integrating ‘home’ and ‘labour’.
The arrival of factories removed industry from the home, meaning someone had to
leave home to work. The result was that trade, or business, became more
definitely separated from family life. Gradually, industry became the domain of
men, and having a wife who didn’t need to work was a marker of success.
(Dorothy Sayers. Are women human? 31-33)
We
then went through a period of time when women were, as a group, thought to be
suited only to home life (The Victorian period especially.) As always happens,
the pendulum of opinion shifted from that position to that of erasing the lines
between men and women completely, and from the work that men and women do.
I
see fervent advocates for both views in the world today, and tend to believe,
as Dorothy Sayers wrote, that a job should be done by the person best suited to
it, which neutralizes the issue altogether. I particularly like this: “It is
ridiculous to take on a man’s job just in order to be able to say that ‘a woman
has done it – yah!’ The only decent reason for tackling any job is that it is
your job, and you want to do it.” (Sayers. Are women human? 30)
The work itself
Certainly
there are occupations that are traditionally feminine in that they address the
personal rather than the abstract (teaching and nursing are two examples.) We
tend to be comfortable with the idea of a woman in these fields rather than a
more typically masculine line of work because these are maternal, nurturing jobs.
Is
it the maternal aspect of a given job that makes it suitable work for a woman? Often
yes, but not always. As Gertrud von le Fort tells us, “the professions of women
are not meant to be the substitute for motherhood, but rather the application
of the never failing motherliness that is in every genuine woman.” (The Eternal
Woman. 80) She goes on to say that it is only when a woman betrays her maternal
character that she goes wrong (her words are “have a fatal influence”). (Eternal
Woman. 81)
Dorothy
Sayers writes about the little girl who likes chemistry – but it doesn’t mean
that every little girl should become a chemist; or the fact that most girls
enjoy dolls – but that doesn’t mean that every girl will like to play with
dolls. In other words, there must be room for individuality. There are certain
things that are true about us because we are women… and there are other things
that are true about us because we are a unique creature of God with an individual
calling and the gifts to live it out. These two facts about us mean that with
maturity and self-knowledge, we can be drawn to a profession with masculine
traits, and transform it with our feminine gifts. (Edith Stein. Woman. 254,255)
What women contribute to the
world of work
Women
tend to want certain qualities in their work: they prefer it to be purposeful,
humanizing, and personal, and, As Alice von Hildebrand writes, “our minds work
best when animated by our hearts.” (Privilege of Being a Woman. 62)
If
these qualities are lacking, she will likely find the work draining and even
demeaning. Because these qualities are in keeping with her feminine heart, if
the work itself doesn’t demand it of her, hopefully she can find scope to “humanize
man” (Alice von Hildebrand. The Privilege of Being a Woman. 46) She can be a
reminder of the need for balance: home and family as well as work. She brings
her beauty, delicacy, charm, ability to relate to the personal, her creativity
to the workplace. She is a reminder that not all strength is physical. Most
importantly, she provides a feminine voice and a maternal heart to the public
sphere.
“Woman’s
intrinsic value can work in every place … completely independent of the
profession which she practices … Everywhere she meets with a human being, she
will find opportunity to sustain, to counsel, to help. … The motherliness must
be that which does not remain within the narrow circle of blood relations or of
personal friends; but in accordance with the model of the Mother of Mercy, it
must have its root in universal divine love for all who are there, belabored
and burdened.” (Edith Stein, Woman.
264)
The importance of
discernment
Whether
to work or not is just one question that needs careful and thoughtful consideration.
Hopefully prayer and discernment is involved in the decision – for women with
children or not, for married women or not. What field of work and the specific
job also should be discerned: does it take away from higher priorities
(especially family); is it morally and ethically sound; does it respect your
dignity and that of others; will it enhance or diminish you as a person.
One
thing to keep in mind is that ‘having it all’ is a lie. Saying yes to one
choice means saying no to something else. It also isn’t possible to be always
happy and fulfilled in every moment. Ask any working mother and she will tell
you about the guilt she feels for leaving her children (and ask the woman
providing care for those children and she will tell you of her gratitude for
having a good job!) Ask a ‘stay-at-home’ mom and she will tell you about the
days she longs to get out of the house. None of these scenarios is absolutely
perfect or easy; we all make sacrifices.
Best
advice? Heed the wisdom of our Blessed
Mother at the wedding at Cana: Do whatever He tells you to do.
“Thank
you, women who work! You are present and active in every area of
life-social, economic, cultural, artistic and political. In this way you make
an indispensable contribution to the growth of a culture which unites reason
and feeling, to a model of life ever open to the sense of "mystery",
to the establishment of economic and political structures ever more worthy of
humanity.” (Letter of Pope John Paul II
to women)
