As members of the Vincentian Family we have become accustomed to using terms such as Advocacy, Aporophobia, Homelessness, Collaboration, Systemic Change, etc., to describe either situations that we encounter in our work/ministry or actions that we carry out. To deepen our understanding of these concepts from the perspective of our charism, we have developed this series of posts, entitled a “Vincentian Dictionary”, with the aim of offering each week an explanation of the various words/phrases from a social, moral, Christian and Vincentian perspective. Inspired by the charism of St. Vincent de Paul, we hope to deepen our understanding and reflect on service, social justice and love of neighbor. At the end of each article you will find some ideas for personal reflection and/or group dialogue.

Follow the complete thread of this Vincentian dictionary at this link.

Work is a central aspect of the lives of individuals and societies. Beyond being a productive activity, work represents a source of dignity, personal development, and contribution to the common good. However, it is not always recognized and guaranteed as a universal right, nor is it always exercised under fair and dignified conditions.

1. Work as a Human Right

Dignified work is a fundamental right enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 23) and reiterated by organizations like the International Labour Organization (ILO). This right implies access to productive employment under conditions of equality, safety, and fair remuneration.

Today, millions of people face precarious employment, discrimination, and exploitation. Concrete examples include the excessive working hours and insufficient wages prevalent in many global industries. Even more concerning is child labor, a reality affecting 160 million children according to the UN (2020).

To combat these inequalities, it is essential for governments, businesses, and organizations to collaborate on implementing inclusive and sustainable employment policies. The fight for dignified work is also a fight for justice and social equity.

2. Work as a Moral Virtue

From a moral perspective, work dignifies the human being. Through work, individuals develop their talents, contribute to their families’ well-being, and strengthen social cohesion. This vision contrasts with practices that reduce work to a mere economic transaction.

Work ethics include values such as responsibility, honesty, solidarity, and justice. A society that promotes these values in the workplace fosters integration and social cohesion. Conversely, corruption and labor exploitation erode trust and perpetuate inequality.

3. Work in Christian Spirituality

In Christian tradition, work holds intrinsic value as a collaboration with God’s creative work. Genesis states that “God took the man and placed him in the Garden of Eden to cultivate and keep it” (Genesis 2:15). This command highlights humanity’s responsibility to work in harmony with creation.

Jesus, known as “the carpenter’s son” (Matthew 13:55), experienced work as part of his human life. St. Paul also exhorts: “Anyone unwilling to work should not eat” (2 Thessalonians 3:10), emphasizing the importance of personal effort.

The Social Doctrine of the Church underscores that work is much more than an activity to generate income; it is an essential path for individuals to develop integrally and participate actively in the common good. Laborem Exercens by St. John Paul II states that “work is a key, probably the essential key, to the whole social question” and that respecting workers’ dignity promotes justice and social development. Similarly, Rerum Novarum by Leo XIII denounces morally unacceptable working conditions that deny human dignity, urging a fair balance between workers’ rights and economic interests. Additionally, Caritas in Veritate by Benedict XVI emphasizes that work should not be a tool for exploitation but a means for self-realization and contributing to the common good. This vision stresses the need to combat all forms of labor exploitation and eradicate child labor, practices that deny the inherent dignity of the human person and perpetuate social injustice. Thus, a determined commitment is required from society, institutions, and individuals to transform work into a means of personal fulfillment and collective justice.

4. Work from the Vincentian Perspective

St. Vincent de Paul, known as the “father of the poor,” conceived of work as an expression of love and service to those most in need. For Vincentians, work is not just an option but a vocation reflecting a commitment to justice and charity.

4.1. The Example of St. Vincent de Paul

We have extracted this section from the book “En tiempos de Vicente de Paúl y Hoy, Vol. 1”.

Work occupied a very important place in the experience, the project and the thought of St. Vincent. To understand its importance, it is obviously necessary to place oneself in the context of the 17th century, in a type of society very different from our own, especially with regard to work.

If we accept this effort of simple honesty, we will surely be surprised to discover in St. Vincent certain ways of acting and certain perspectives that are likely to provoke, even today, our reflection and our revisions of activity and life!

a) St. Vincent’s experience

St. Vincent’s whole life is characterized by work. He was born into a world of workers and spent his entire childhood in it. Ordained a priest, and after 1617, he portrays the priestly ministry and the service of the poor in general as “work”, which demands professional courage, competence and conscience. As we know, he will be an indefatigable “worker” and, in spite of that, at the end of his life, he will confess his regret “for having misused his time”.

About his “social” origins, St. Vincent is very clear: he affirms that he knows the world of the poor villagers.

I know them [the virtues of rural people] by experience and by nature since I am the son of a humble tiller of the soil, and lived in the country until I was fifteen (CCD:IX:67).

From his earliest age, he takes part in the laborious life of poor people and, when he evokes the memories of his childhood, work always appears in them as an oppressive necessity. Thus, regarding the life of poor village women:

They come home from work, worn out and fatigued, wet through and covered in mud, to eat their meager lunch, and they are barely there when, if the weather is suitable for work of if their father and mother tell them to go back to it, they do so at once, without paying too much attention to their weariness, or the mud, or how they look (CCD:IX:75).

At the age of 15, Vincent clearly distances himself from this “world of work” and sees in the priesthood first of all the occasion “for a promotion” (I, 88), In 1617 he discovers the poor and becomes a “worker of the Gospel”. Indeed, it is interesting to note that St. Vincent often uses the vocabulary of work to define the ministries in the Church:

Let us love God, brothers, let us love God, but let it be with the strength of our arms and sweat of our brows … The Church is compared to a great harvest that requires workers, but hardworking ones (CCD:XI:32, 33).

And the real life of the workers becomes a privileged and provocative reference both for the members of the Congregation of the Mission and for the Daughters of Charity.

Poor vine dressers, who give us their labor, who expect us to pray for them while they wear themselves out to feed us! We look for the shade: we don’t want to go out in the sun; we’re so much in love with our comforts! During the mission we’re at least in church, sheltered from the bad weather, the heat of the sun. and the rain, to which those poor people are exposed. And we cry for help if someone gives us something to do that’s the slightest bit out of the ordinary. My room, my book, my Mass! Well, enough of that! Is that what it means to be a Missioner, to have all our comforts? God acts as our provider here. He takes care ot all our needs and more than our needs. He gives us a sufficiency and more than that. I don’t know if we think enough about thanking Him for this. We live on the patrimony of Jesus Christ, on the sweat of poor people. When we go to the refectory, we must always think. “Have I earned the food that I’m about to eat?” I’ve often had this thought that puts me to shame: “Wretched man. have you earned the bread you’re about to eat, that bread that comes to you from the labor of the poor?’”If we don’t earn it like them, at least let’s pray for their needs. Animals know those who feed them (CCD:XI:190-191).

As for the Daughters of Charity, the reference is likewise, and even more so, taken from the world of work, and applied to the concrete life of the servants.

From 1617 until the end of his life, St. Vincent was also a “worker”… and a worker who worked “in the evangelization of the poor”. And his last laments seem to have been defined by work:

Alas, the seventy-six years of life I’ve lived seem to me now only a dream, only an instant; and nothing more is left to me but the regret of having made such poor use of this moment (CCD:XI:309).

b) St. Vincent’s project

For St. Vincent, “work” was certainly a privileged experience and reference point. In his project of evangelization and service of the poor, work is a criterion of primary importance. For him, alms and relief are only emergency solutions, never completely satisfactory. Of course, they had to be provided, since 17th century society had no structures or initiatives in this area. But what St. Vincent intended is clear and tirelessly recalled: to allow those who can: “to be self-sufficient”, “to earn their living”, “to be a burden to no one”. These last three expressions appear again and again in the instructions he gives and in the regulations he writes. He always distinguishes three situations of poverty: those who cannot earn their living (children, the elderly, the sick); those who can only earn part of their living; finally, those who can earn their living.

The directors of the Association (the Confraternities of Charity) will place the children who are poor in a trade as soon as they are old enough. They will make a weekly distribution, to the disabled poor and the elderly who cannot work, of what they need to live on; for those who earn only part of what they need, the association will provide for the rest (CCD:XIIIb:54).

“The Company of the Charity shall be established in the town of … to assist corporally and spiritually the poor persons … corporally, by sdeeing that those who are able to work learn a trade and earn thier own living , and by giving the others the means of subsistence (CCD:XIIIb:79).

“All the poor… boys between eight and fifteen to twenty years of age, or who are older, but disabled or elderly persons who can earn only part of their living or are unable to do anything. The little children, the disabled, and those who are aged and infirm will be given weekly what they need to get by; to those who will earn part of their own living the Company will give the other part. The youths will be placed in some modest trade, such as that of a weaver, which costs only three or four écus per apprentice; or a workshop will be set up for some simple work (CCD:XIIIb:81-82).

As we can see, the criterion of “earning a living” appears constantly. It even appears when St. Vincent organizes national relief in the provinces devastated by the war:

An effort will be made to collect one hundred pistoles for that purpose, while awaiting the season for sowing. Meanwhile, you are asked to find out in what parts of Champagne and Picardy there are very poor people who may have need of such assistance — I mean, the greatest need. You could recommend to them in passing to prepare a small plot of land, to plough and fertilize it, and to ask God to send them some seed to plant in it. In addition, without making them any promises, give them the hope that God will provide.

They would also like to enable all the other poor people who have no land — men as well as women — to earn their own living, by giving the men some tools for working and the girls and women spinning wheels and flax or linen for spinning — but only the poorest. When peace is restored, everyone will have something to do and, since the soldiers will no longer seize their property, they will be able to put something by and gradually get back on their feet. With that in view, the assembly’ felt that they should be helped to get started and then told that they must no longer look for any relief from Paris (CCD:VIII:82-83).

c) St. Vincent’s concept of work

For St. Vincent, work was an experience, a privileged reference. In his project of evangelization and service of the poor, it was a criterion of the greatest importance, the aim of his action being to give the poor the means “to earn their living, to serve as a burden to no one”.

In a conference to the Daughters of Cariad on November 28, 1649, St. Vincent presents in a more methodical and complete way his thought on work (SVP ES IX, 498).

Not to be a burden to anyone:

God, addressing the just man, says that he’ll live by the work of his hands — as if He had wanted to make us understand that his greatest obligation, after that of rendering to God the service he owes Him, is to work to earn his living — and that He’ll bless the pains he takes in such a way that no one will ever see him in need, he’ll never be dependent on anyone, he’ll live and support his family by the work of his hands, and all will go well with him. God even promises to work with him and, by working, he will bless God (CCD:IX:382).

Like the ant and the bees:

The ant, dear Sisters, is a little creature to which God has given such foresight that it brings to the community all it can amass during the summer and harvest time, to be used during the winter. You see, dear Sisters, the ant doesn’t appropriate it to his personal use but brings it to the little community storehouse for the others. Bees do the same during the summer. They store up the honey they gather from flowers so they can live on it during the winter; like the ants, they, too, bring it to the community. They’re only tiny creatures, the tiniest on earth, and God has implanted in them this instinct to work, so He refers us to them to learn from their example how to work with foresight (CCD:IX:383).

For the human being, only for the human being:

God toils with each individual: with the craftsman in his shop, with the woman in her household, with the ant and the bee to do their collecting, and He does so constantly and continually. And why does He labor? For us, dear Sisters, only for us, to preserve our lives and to procure for us everything we need. If a God, Emperor of the entire world, has never for a single moment stopped working interiorly and exteriorly ever since the world has been the world, and even in the lowliest of earth’s productions, with which He cooperates, how much more reasonable that we, who are His creatures, should work, as He’s said, with the sweat of our brow! (CCD:IX:384).

He served as a day laborer and mason:

What did Our Lord do when He lived on earth, dear Sisters? I’ll simply say that He led two lives on earth. One, from His birth until His thirtieth year, during which He worked to earn His living in the sweat of His divine brow. His trade was that of a carpenter; he was an unskilled laborer, and a bricklayer’s assistant. From His youth He worked from morning till night and continued until He died.  The other stage of the life of Jesus Christ on earth is from the age of thirty until His death. During those three years what did He not do, day and night, going off to preach without a break, now in the temple, now in a village, in order to convert the world and to win over souls to His Father? During that time, what do you think He lived on, dear Sisters? He possessed nothing on earth, not even a stone on which to lay His divine head, in which Eternal Wisdom dwelt. So, He lived on the alms given Him by Mary Magdalen and the other devout women who followed Him to listen to His sermons. He went to the homes of those who invited Him and continued to work day and night and at all hours, sometimes going to places where He knew souls might be won, sometimes to the home of a sick person, to heal first his body, then his soul … To act in this way, dear Sisters, is to imitate Our Lord’s conduct on earth; and to earn your living in this way, without wasting time, is to earn it as Our Lord did. 

Saint Paul, that great Apostle and thoroughly divine man, that vessel of election, earned his living by the work of his hands. In the midst of his heavy labors, his important ministries, his continual preaching, he took time, either by night or by day, to be self-sufficient so as not to have to ask for anything from anyone. “You know,” he says in one of his talks, “that I’ve demanded nothing of you, and that the bread I eat to sustain my body was earned by my own hands” (CCD:IX:384-386).

Gaining my life rightfully:

You can earn a sufficient livelihood by serving your neighbor; you’re not a burden on anyone; you provide for yourselves. Would to God that I could do the same, I who am unworthy of the bread I eat; would that it were permissible for me to earn my living and to be able to serve my neighbor without possessing anything or being dependent on anyone! … But we can’t, and we have to humble ourselves because of it (CCD:IX:387-388).

The obsequies of charity:

That good is substantial, Sisters, greater than you could imagine or than I can express. Take, for instance, two Sisters living in a parish; what do they not do? What do we hear people say of their way of life? It’s a life absolutely divine, a life like Jesus Christ led on earth; God works continually with them, and He really must, dear Sisters, for they wouldn’t be able to do what they’re doing. I’m thinking right now of two of our Sisters, who are in a place where they don’t have much to do and have enough to live on; I’m worried about them and fear that this may be an occasion for them to grow lax and become lazy. I’d prefer that the foundation had not been made, dear Sisters, because that will cause the ruin of your Company. When our Sisters are comfortably established and don’t have enough to do, they’ll neglect the work they do have and won’t bother going to visit the poor. Then we’ll have to say good-bye to the Charity; it’s no longer the Charity; it’s buried; then we’ll have the funeral of the Charity. That’s what will happen if God doesn’t maintain it. I myself won’t see it, for I won’t be on this earth much longer; but you, to whom God will give a long life, you’ll see it (CCD:IX:388-389).

We would have to sell ourselves to lift our brothers out of misery:

A gentleman said to me yesterday, “for the last eight years I’ve given myself to God not to make any profit from my possessions. Once I’m fed and clothed, I give the surplus to the poor. I’m well aware that I won’t be able to provide a position for my son, but I couldn’t act otherwise.” He’s a man of the world, dear Sisters, who doesn’t have to do anything, and who has children; yet, after simply providing himself with the necessities of life, he gives everything else to the poor, even going so far as to sell and mortgage his property. We should sell ourselves to rescue our brothers and sisters from destitution (CCD:IX:390).

I, who am the most unworthy:

I ask God, who, from all eternity, worked within himself; I ask Our Lord Jesus Christ, who worked here on earth, even as a laborer; I ask the Holy Spirit to inspire us to work hard; I ask Saint Paul, who earned by the work of his hands the bread on which he subsisted; I ask all those holy religious who did manual labor and achieved sanctity that lit may please the goodness of God to forgive us for the time we’ve so often wasted, especially myself, who am most unworthy of the bread I eat and which God gives me; I repeat, I ask Our Lord Jesus Christ to grant ns the grace to work in imitation of Him; I ask the Blessed Virgin and all the saints to obtain this grace for us from the Most Blessed Trinity, in whose name and on whose infinite goodness I rely, I will now pronounce the words of blessing … (CCD:IX:390-391).

4.2. Frederic Ozanam and Labor Justice

Frederic Ozanam, founder of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, was a pioneer of social justice in 19th-century France. In an era marked by industrial revolutions and extreme inequalities, Ozanam stood out for his tireless advocacy for workers, who faced deplorable labor conditions and grueling workdays. The industrial revolution, which transformed rural economies into urban and industrial models, increased production but also deeply worsened labor conditions. Many workers, despite their hard work, lived in poverty due to meager wages and the lack of labor regulations.

Ozanam was a critical voice against these injustices. He denounced worker exploitation, including child labor, and advocated for fundamental rights such as fair working hours, dignified wages, and access to weekly rest. Moreover, his commitment extended beyond words: in 1846, alongside other Sorbonne professors, he offered free classes to workers in the crypt of Saint-Sulpice, convinced that education was key to overcoming poverty. He firmly believed that work, far from being merely an economic necessity, was “the great regenerative force of the world,” a means to dignify people and regenerate society.

In his writings, Ozanam also reflected on how Christianity rehabilitated the dignity of work, contrasting with the pagan disdain for workers. Work is an obligation that is placed on everyone and no one should be idle. In one of his works (La Civilisation au Cinquième Siecle), he says that “Christianity restored [labor] to its original rank by the example of Christ and the apostles, by that of St. Paul, who went into partnership with the Jewish man, Aquila at Corinth, rather than eat bread which he had not gained with the sweat of his brow.”

He believed that work should be inspired by values such as justice and respect for human dignity. His life and work testify to the transformative role of work in building a more equitable society—a legacy that remains alive in the Vincentian charism.

In 1848, a group of citizens from Lyon nominated Frederic as a candidate for deputy in the French National Assembly. The elections took place on April 23. Eight days before, Ozanam had sent a “Circular to the electors of the department of Rhône”, where he introduced his electoral program. Frederic was not elected, but he continued, until the end of his life, to advocate and defend workers’ rights.

“I will stand for labor rights: the work of the farmer, the artisan, the merchant; workers’ associations; works of public utility of state initiative, which can offer hospitality to laborers who lack work or resources. I will do everything possible to call for measures of justice and social security to alleviate the suffering of the population.”

Frederic Ozanam, Electoral Manifesto, 1848.

4.3. The Vincentian Commitment Today

In today’s world, Vincentians continue to work for the poorest through programs focused on job training, microcredit, and support for labor market integration. These initiatives aim not only to alleviate immediate needs but also to empower people to take charge of their development.

4.4. A Vincentian Reflection on Work

A Vincentian who does not work for others is disconnected from their essence. Working with love and perseverance is a way to live the Gospel. As St. Vincent said: “Love is inventive to infinity”; likewise, work must be creative to face the challenges of today’s world.

— – —

Work is a fundamental right and a vocation that must ensure fair and dignified conditions for all. From the Vincentian perspective, it is essential that workers experience tangible improvements in their labor conditions, as this not only dignifies the person but also promotes the common good. The Vincentian Family reaffirms its active commitment to the struggle for workers’ dignity, striving for a more just and supportive society where work truly becomes a driver of social transformation.