ABSTRACT
The close relationship between work and liturgy is seldom mentioned in contemporary doctrinal expositions. This is indicative of the general lack of attention given to the interaction between current manuals of Christian ethics and those of liturgical theology. This chapter seeks to address the following question: Where does the vital connection – or, conversely, the divorce – between work and worship lie? A liturgical celebration that fails to embrace work in order to transform it ab intra is not truly a celebration of the Church, but a merely ceremonial formality. Conversely, labor divorced from its integration into the Paschal Mystery becomes a purely earthly endeavor, a worldly pursuit devoid of hope. When we speak of “translating the Paschal Mystery into work”, we refer to the Christian understanding that all work aimed at transforming creation is called to reflect, albeit in a limited manner, the universal significance of Christ’s Oblation on the Cross and to radiate the inexhaustible salvific potential of his Paschal Mystery. This endeavor would be impossible without the Eucharist, which therefore stands as a precious reality of the Church on pilgrimage.
