True to his motto, “Pray and Work”, Benedict believed in honest, hard work as a way of glorifying God and helping people in the community. As Principal of Nweli Primary School, Benedict was wholly dedicated to the work of education. One day a teacher tried to skip his lesson preparation for the following week by going to the bank in Sibasa to withdraw his salary. On noticing his absence, Benedict got in his car, chased after him, stopped the taxi and made the teacher return with him to school to complete his preparation. That done, Benedict then drove the teacher to the bank.
In his relationship
with his learners, Benedict was always motivated by love. He encouraged them to
be diligent, independent and self-reliant. Those unable to pay school fees were
invited to work in his garden to earn their school fees. Benedict would visit
the families of absentees to find out the reason and to see if he could offer
help. With his own children, he worked in his vegetable garden and planted
trees – something quite unusual for school teachers, headmasters, or educated
people in general.
Benedict exercised
good stewardship by using his money wisely and well. He was the first in his
village to build a brick house with savings from his salary and from selling vegetables
and fruit from his garden and orchard. Through careful budgeting, he purchased
a car, TV set and telephone, but because of envy, some people suspected him of
making use of zombies (corpses supposedly brought back to life by witchcraft).
Word
of God
It will be as when
a man going on a journey called his servants and entrusted his possessions to
them; to one he gave five talents, to another two; to a third, one – to each
according to his ability. Then he went away. Immediately the one who received the
five talents went and traded with them, and made another five. Likewise, the
one who received two made another two.
(Matthew 25, 14-15)
Deepening
of Faith
Nazareth, O House
of the “Carpenter's son”, it is here that we would like to understand and
celebrate the severe and redemptive law of human labour; here restore awareness
of the nobility of work; here remember that work is not an end in itself, but
its freedom and its nobility come, as well as its economic value, from values
which are its goal; how we would like to finally welcome here all workers of
the world and show them their great model, their divine brother, the Prophet of
all their just causes, Christ our Lord.
(Pope Paul VI, Address in Nazareth, 5 January 1964)
Reflection Am
I doing my job/work as well as I can?
Do I feel ashamed when doing manual
work?
Prayer
People go forth to do their work,
to their labour till the evening falls.
How varied are your works, O Lord!
In wisdom you have made them all;
The earth is full of your
creatures. (Psalm
104, 23-24)
Prayer
