A Supernatural Motive: Transforming Work into Holiness
Many people see work as a purely earthly task—something to earn a living, build a career, or achieve success. But St. Josemaria Escriva taught that work has eternal significance. When done with love for God, our daily efforts become more than a profession—they become a path to holiness.
Work: A Participation in God’s Creation
From the beginning, God created man to work and cultivate the world (Gen 2:15). Work is not a punishment—it is an invitation to co-create with God. Jesus himself spent most of his life as a carpenter, teaching us that all work, when united with Him, is redemptive.
St. Josemaria explained: "Work, all work, bears witness to the dignity of man… For a Christian, work is a participation in the creative work of God."
Sanctifying Work: Three Key Elements
Holiness in work is not about what we do, but how we do it. St. Josemaria emphasized that work should not only be a professional duty but a path to holiness when done with the right supernatural motive. This involves three interconnected dimensions:
✔ Sanctifying the work itself – This means approaching every task—whether big or small—with diligence, integrity, and a spirit of excellence. Work is not simply something we do for earthly success; it is an offering to God. St. Josemaria taught that "it is no good offering to God something that is less perfect than our poor human limitations permit" (Friends of God). Whether writing emails, managing a business, or manual labor, our work should be orderly, honest, and done to the best of our ability—not for our own glory, but for God’s.
✔ Sanctifying ourselves in work – Work is more than a job; it is a means of personal transformation. When done with the right intention, it builds virtues such as perseverance, patience, humility, and responsibility. Through our work, we can learn to overcome laziness, combat self-centeredness, and cultivate fortitude and charity. This is how work becomes not just a task but a path to holiness, making us more like Christ each day.
✔ Sanctifying others through work – Work is also an apostolate, a way of bringing Christ into the world. By working with joy, generosity, and a spirit of service, we inspire those around us and create an environment of virtue. St. Josemaria emphasized that our faith should be visible in the way we treat colleagues, clients, and employees. Whether it’s showing patience in a difficult conversation, maintaining ethical business practices, or simply offering a kind word, our work should point others to God.
By transforming our daily work into an act of love for God, we do more than just complete tasks—we take part in God’s creative work and our own sanctification.
Love as the Driving Force
What truly sanctifies work is not success but love for God. A supernatural motive shapes our attitude, leading us to approach even small tasks with care. As St. Josemaria put it: "Add a supernatural motive to your ordinary work, and you will have sanctified it."
This means:
Seeking God’s presence in daily tasks.
Offering each effort, success, and failure as a gift to God.
Recognizing that the dignity of work is not in its prestige but in the love with which it is done.
The workshop of Nazareth teaches us that even the most humble tasks can be filled with grace. Whether we lead a company, teach a class, or clean a home, our work can become a work of God—an opus Dei.
