Help us expand our reach! Please share this article on social media Much of the modern social teaching of the Church is inextricably intertwined with her teachings on work and labor -- both on the dignity of work and, more importantly, on the dignity of those who work. This past year, however, seems to have made the importance of work more prominent than usual. Since 1955, the feast of St. Joseph the Worker has been celebrated on May 1. In this Year of St Joseph, this offers another opportunity to honor this oft-neglected saint. I have to admit that, to me, the moniker "Worker" seems startlingly mundane for such a great saint. St. Joseph, after all, is honored with many loftier titles such as "Light of Patriarchs," "Patron of the Dying," "Protector of the Holy Church," "Patron of the Universal Church," and the particularly vivid "Terror of Demons" -- to name but a few. Within his family, he is both "Spouse of the Mother of God," and "Foster-Father of the Son of God." More sublime or awesome appellations would be hard to imagine.