Pope
Francis received employees of the Holy See’s curial dicasteries and
Vatican offices on Thursday morning, along with their families, for an
exchange of Christmas greetings and well-wishes.
In remarks prepared for the occasion and delivered in the Paul VI
Hall, Pope Francis spoke to his guests of the duty to be grateful to
heaven for the gift of work, and of the duty employers have to respect
the rights and dignity of the people who work for them.
“Work is very important for the person who works, and for that
person’s family,” said Pope Francis. “While we give thanks [for the work
we have], let us pray for the persons and the families – in Italy and
in all the world – who do not have work, or who so often do unworthy
jobs, poor-paying jobs, jobs that are harmful to their health,” he
continued.
The Holy Father went on to say, “We must commit ourselves, each of us
according to his responsibility, to guaranteeing that work be always
worthy and dignified (It. degno): that it be respectful of the person and of the family; that it be just.”
“Here in the Vatican,” Pope Francis explained, “we have an additional
reason to do this: we have the Gospel, and we must follow the
directives of the Social Doctrine of the Church.”
“No keeping employees ‘off book’ (or ‘paying them under the table’) [It. lavoro in nero],” Pope Francis specified, adding emphatically, “No sneaky games and tricks [It. sotterfugi, literally ‘subterfuges’].”
“Les us all give thanks to the Lord, therefore,” Pope Francis continued.
“For my part, however, I would like today to thank you for your
work,” the Pope told his employees. “I thank each one of you, for the
dedication each one of you puts into his work each day, trying to do it
well, even when one is perhaps not feeling well, or when there are
worries at home,” Pope Francis added.
The Holy Father went on to discuss one of the things that makes the Vatican a special place to work.
“A nice thing about the Vatican is that, since it is a very small
operation, it is possible to perceive it as a whole, with the various
tasks that make up the whole, and each is important: the various areas
of work are close and connected,” he said, “[and] everyone knows more or
less everyone else.”
Pope Francis went on to say that it is satisfying to be able to participate in such an orderly and well-ordered operation.
“One can feel the satisfaction,” the Pope said, “of seeing a certain
order, [of seeing] that things work, with all the limitations, of course
– one can always do better and one must always must [try to] – but it
is good to hear that each sector does its part and that the whole works
well to the advantage of all.”
“Here, this is easier,” Pope Francis continued, “because we are a
small outfit – but this does not detract from [your] commitment and
personal merit, and therefore I feel the desire to thank you.”
The Holy Father concluded with special thanks for the work done
during the course of the recently-concluded Jubilee of Mercy, and
promised prayers for all the employees and their families – especially
for those who are sick, or elderly, or too young to come – even as he
asked theirs for himself.